Veiled Fairy
by onehandopen
Summary: AU Brittana. Santana is the mysterious Veiled Fairy, the reluctant protector of a dark city with the help of Brittany and Sugar Motta. Follow as she fights to keep the world safe for the one person who actually matters to her.
1. Chapter 1

**So this is my first fan fic ever so any feedback you have would be greatly appreciated. I love the campy quality to glee but I will be channeling more of a dark theme from modern graphic novels while using the awesomeness of glee for levity. Tame right now but will contain violence, bit of gore, definite mature themes, sexuality and of course some obscene language. Right so this is an AU obviously, but in general their highschool experience is true to cannon. I will fill in this in as time goes on but I will start by saying at the moment they are not together but that will change. Not set in Lima, for now it's just an unnamed city as that's just about the only thing I haven't figured out yet. **

A stoic silence crawls across the city as all the evil creatures slither back into their holes as the veil of darkness begins to threaten to lift. Whispers of the morning whistle through the trees and finally a wounded hero finds herself at home. The silence isn't a sign of change or of peacefulness taming a wild city it's simply an unspoken code of conduct and its good enough for the Veiled Fairy. She vaults smoothly onto the windows ledge and sits perched high above the city staring into the penthouse studio apartment in Motta Towers. Darkness shrouds the apartment with the only light being offered by the full moon sitting defiantly in the sky. She doesn't need the light to see inside her eyes are trained for the darkness and she can see the beautiful woman perfectly without any help.

Brittany Susan Pierce lays sprawled out on the leather sofa with her blonde hair framing her angelic features in a way that defies logic. She's perfect and appears even more innocent as she slumbers with a laptop clutched close to her chest. The Veiled Fairy is careful not to wake her as she steps softly into the room finally relaxing into her surroundings. The pretty blonde doesn't stir she continues to slumber with the softest of smiles painted across her lips and the image almost tugs a smile from Santana. She struggles to tear her gaze away from the woman and it is that feeling of attachment that chills her blood. The beautiful woman on her couch is beautiful, innocent, everything good about a miserable world and the only thing in the city worth protecting but she is no longer Santana's. Having her as a friend and partner in a war against an ocean of evil is often bittersweet and tonight those feelings feel heightened. The fact that she can still fall asleep with a smile on her lips makes Santana feel proud because it means she's doing her job, she's making the city safe for one of the only people she cares about anymore.

Her body begins to betray her as the pain slowly settles in as the adrenaline bleeds out of her and it's a welcome release from the emotional torment of being so close to something she can't really have. There's something about the pain she feels at peace with, maybe it's because it's the only way she feels anything anymore that isn't that confused anguish birthed from regret. Tonight it isn't the dull ache of regular exertion, it's a sharp pain that sets her senses on fire and she revels in it as her body eases back against the wall her body screaming at her enough to cause her teeth to grind together. Slender fingers shake as they lift to remove her mask and she holds it down in front of her staring down into the hallow eyes.

Like the criminals she likes the darkness though unlike most of the common creatures the darkness likes her back just as much. She controls the shadows but sometimes she doesn't even know it, like right now, they creep down from the corners of the room drawn to her body like a moth to a flame. They offer protection and a place to hide away and slumber in the quiet embrace of feeling even a little bit alive for a moment. The idea is in her brain and she fixates on it long enough to forget to pay attention to what's going on around her. She doesn't hear Brittany stir or put the laptop down or even her graceful footsteps as she glides across the floor towards her careful in her approach.

"Santana?" her voice is soft and sweet as it drips from her lips and is full of caution as she's barely even sure if Santana is really there at all.

The veil of darkness withdraws quickly as the voice brings Santana's thoughts back to reality and her eyes flick up to stare deeply into the bluest eyes she's ever seen. She watches stoically as they grow wide in horror as the extent of the damage done to her face is revealed to the innocent girl. Santana doesn't hesitate as Brittany reaches out to touch her cheek; she swats the hand away with precision. She offers no apologies as the Brittany winces and she knows it isn't from pain because she didn't hit her hard. It's the reminder that nothing is the same anymore, that everything is still just out of reach. Santana can't find the words her jaw merely tenses and her eyes continue to drown in the beautiful blue in front of her.

"I knew something was wrong", Brittany finally breaks the silence; her voice is a hushed rage and cuts the air easily. Persistently she steps back into Santana's space her brow becoming tense as she studies the injuries from afar, "Sugar said the feed cut out but I knew she was lying, she said you were safe on the docks.." her voice trails off and the hurt is evident in her features. She hates being misled but Santana isn't going to rally to her defense this time she's grateful Sugar cut the feed to the laptop, she isn't even sure how Richie Bitch knew Santana was in trouble but for not she doesn't care. What happened there Brittany didn't need to see, she likely would never have fallen asleep peacefully again. "She said you were safe" she repeats and her voice trembles as things become unhinged and emotions rush steadily in.

"Britt don't, really it looks worse than it is" Santana encourages and finally breaks her own rules laying a hand gently onto Brittany's head her fingers weaving into the pretty blonde locks. Brittany looks at her with a sad smile and suddenly Santana can't think straight anymore and getting far away from those blue eyes becomes a priority. "I need to upload this footage…I should…" she cuts herself off and slips around the dancer moving towards the laptop with determination knowing her voice betrayed her. She sounded nervous and scared, bordering on vulnerable and she promised herself she wouldn't do this to Brittany again.

Her attempted escape is futile and she gets no more than a few steps before she feels a hand wrap around her shoulder and her body suddenly freezes. Santana's head hangs slightly as Brittany moves around to stand in front of her again and this time she reaches to touch Santana without having her hand batted away. Santana stands perfectly still as Brittany's fingers slide up her jaw her hands now gently framing her face. She can't breathe or think about anything other than the warmth building beneath Brittany's fingertips. Brittany is more than just Santana's friend, she also happens to be her healer. Santana was always grateful that Britt never got offensive powers, it made it easier for her to convince the woman not to go out patrolling with her.

Brittany works slowly her fingers move gently sliding across the bruises and scrapes the wounds healing perfectly beneath her touch. Santana's lower lip is split wide open and she freezes when Brittany's thumbs pause at the corners of her mouth. It's not her touch that has Santana's attention but the intense look in her eyes as she stares down at the wound. It feels like the air has gone out of the room and Santana cannot find the words to stop her and her brain disconnects from her body to prevent her from defending against what happens next. Her eyes slide shut and her other senses kick into high gear as Brittany's lips wrap around her lower lip pulling it into her warm mouth. Brittany's fingers slide back and one hand goes to the back of Santana's head tangling it in thick black locks. For a second all of the pain seems to melt away as she completely submits to the kiss.

It's over too soon and yet not soon enough as Brittany pulls away and Santana's eyes slowly open like she's waking from a deep sleep. Brittany stays close her eyes seeming to stare right through Santana's defenses and she asks quietly, "Are you hurt anywhere else?" she hesitates a moment before continuing to speak, "I should be going but if you need any more help…" and this brings Santana back down to reality. She remembers to exhale and pulls away from the embrace crawling back behind her walls trying to ignore the intense feeling of longing building in the pit of her stomach. _'She isn't yours'_ she reminds herself and shakes her head lightly and then more forcefully as her brow furrows and she seems to come back to her senses.

"No don't go though, I mean it's not safe" She rambles the words off quickly and motions for Brittany to follow her to the laptop. Santana crouches down at the coffee table and ejects a small microchip out of the mask before abandoning the mask on the table. She inserts the chip and boots up the laptop while Brittany looms nervously above her. Santana has momentarily recovered some of her resolve but it's the fear of what happened at the docks that has her on edge. The city is quiet but she doesn't trust it and as she finds the right spot of footage she shows Brittany why. The clip is only a few seconds but it's long enough to get the point across. The screen displays a monstrous beast towering effortlessly above Santana muscles bulging from every inch of its body and a look of pure anger across its disfigured face.

"It's like Coach Bieste and Lauren...combined but like ten times bigger and really ugly and without boobs" Brittany manages to get out after a few minutes of silence. The words are honest and cause a slight smile to twitch at the corner of Santana's mouth but they do not make her forget the damage it did to her and could easily do to Brittany. She gets to her feet and turns towards Brittany a soft expression on her face, "exactly and without boobs it's really not fun to wrestle with so you are staying here until morning okay? Take my bed you've already logged enough hours on the couch" she muses pulling out a familiar smile. They both know it's fake but Brittany mirrors a genuine smile back at Santana and nods hesitantly. Britt doesn't go right away however she pauses and raises her hand gently touching Santana's arm, "just make sure you actually get sleep tonight okay?" she speaks cheerfully but the worried expression she wears tells Santana she shouldn't argue the fact and instead she simply nods.

Santana is grateful when Brittany finally crawls into the bed and she can escape into the bathroom a set of pajamas clutches against her chest as she steadies herself against the bathroom door. She has been fighting back the pain since she stepped into the quiet apartment and as she slowly exhales it takes all of her resolve not to scream. Brittany would have healed her wounds but Santana wouldn't admit to them when she asked and even now she stands vigilantly by her decision. She drops the clothes down and moves stiffly to stand in front of the sink her eyes focusing on her reflection in the mirror. Her face is back to how it should and running her tongue across her lower lip there's not a trace of the injury that had been there before. But it wasn't her face she was worried about, it's what happened beneath her suit.

Sugar Motta in her endlessly supply of money and technology came up with the design and Santana never questioned its effectiveness. They teamed up years ago, Santana saved the girl's life even after Sugar discovered her secret identity and in return Sugar funds Santana's hero business and gives her a cover for her day to day life. The suit has saved her life more times than she can count and running her hands over its material she can't feel any breaks in the material. But something feels wrong all the same and it makes her hands shake as she reaches for the zipper unlocking it and dragging it down the fabric comes loose no longer clinging to her body.

She takes off the gloves and boots first before pulling her arms out of the tight sleeves and peels the suit down to her hips and it's there she stops. Her torso is painted red, blood smeared all up her side and it trickles from a large gash on her left side just below her ribs. She swallows hard and tries to decipher how it even happened but the memories of being tossed around like a rag doll chase her curiosity away. She stares at it for a moment before stripping down the rest of the way and turning the shower on though she doesn't spend as much time beneath the water as she normally would. She wants out and dries off carefully before grabbing a heavily used first aid kid. Brittany isn't always around to play doctor to her wounds so she's had to learn to bandage things up well enough to survive until she can be healed. But this is different, she wants to hide this away like a dirty secret and can feel panic as she tapes the bandage over the spot and then wraps the bandages around her torso.

It isn't just the gash either, bruises cover her body from her shoulders down to her toes and they're already showing up deep and purple. She exhales a ragged breath and spins away from the mirror unable to stare at them any longer and hurriedly pulls a long sleeved shirt over her head and plaid pajama bottoms over her legs. Her stomach churns violently and she closes her eyes saying a silent prayer to whatever might exist to keep her from being sick. She steadies herself and takes a few more moments to herself before exiting into the still dark apartment. She pauses in the doorway listening carefully and only when she hears the slow rhythmic sound of Brittany sleeping soundly does she move towards the couch. She lays down slowly her body screaming with every tiny movement and she buries her face down against the couch her eyes clamped shut trying to control the overwhelming emotion that erupts inside her. She's bruised and broken and the only person who can help her is the person she's afraid to let touch her. She misses when things were easy and she didn't think twice about crawling into bed with Britt, nuzzling gently into her neck and staying tangled in her body until she absolutely had to get out of bed.

She doesn't remember falling asleep but when she wakes up Santana finds herself covered by a blanket and can smell the coffee brewing in the kitchen. She almost smiles for a moment before the pain comes rushing back to her and she covers her mouth to muffle a scream. The ache in her muscles has set in and she struggles to even push back the blankets to get off of the couch. Her body moves slowly and her eyes stay painfully shut until she's found her feet and when they open they search for the blonde by habit. Brittany is still asleep in the bed she's tangled herself around the blankets and is clutching a pillow tightly against her chest. She isn't smiling but she's safe and that's enough for Santana as she finally moves towards the kitchen and coffee. Her feet shuffle as she refuses to take full steps and they carry her slowly towards the cute set up. Her mug is out with sugar already in it and there's a post it note attached, the message is not as adorable as the thoughtfulness of covering her with a blanket and getting her coffee ready. 'Don't forget you have an interview at noon, casual dress no pictures, love Sugar' Santana reads wearily and crumples the paper throwing It with irritation into the sink.

She has time to get ready and she needs it, lucky for her Brittany sleeps like the dead and doesn't hear her moving around. She showers and changes the bandages on her wound which seems to be content to continue bleeding, changes and finishes about three cups of coffee. She is almost ready to wake up Britt to tell her she's leaving when she hears a knock at the door and for the first time that morning she moves with determination and speed. Glancing quickly at a still slumbering Brittany Santana opens the door she smiles softly at the girl though it faces abruptly when she sees who is on the other side of the door. Without hesitation she slips into the hallway and closes the door finding herself standing face to face with Brittany's boyfriend.

In Santana's opinion there's nothing spectacular about him and for all intents and purposes she wouldn't be too bothered if he was suddenly mangled by a serial killer. Pain is forgotten, she pulls herself up to proper posture and folds her arms smoothly across her chest a look of contempt sliding across her features though she says nothing, she waits.

"Is Britt in there?" He finally asks, the irritation in his voice is enough to cause a genuine bitch smirk to slide across Santana's lips.

"Where else would she be?" Santana responds with a slight tilt of her head.

"Well go get her.."

"One you don't tell me what to do and two she's sleeping asshole"

"Yeah and where is she sleeping"

The questions causes a slight laugh to fall from Santana's lips and she's all too encouraged to answer, "she's currently in bed, again where else would she be Mark?" she answers smoothly as she watches his face contort in discomfort and anger.

"Well I don't think that's going to be happening any longer" he abruptly announces digging his hand into the pocket of his suit jacket pulling out a small black box. As though it's been practiced he flicks it open and shows the ring to Santana, "See bitch, we're going to get married and these little sleep overs are going to stop because she'll be my wife."

Santana hesitates only a moment before raising a carefully sculpted brow, "And why on earth would she say yes to YOU?" She retorts irritation now getting the best of her.

He snaps the box shut and puts it into his pocket before his hands move sliding his thumbs into his belt loops his hands splayed down at his thighs he drums his fingers pretentiously, raises his brows and mentions, "because I can give her something you can't. Deep down you know it's true there's just no substitute for the real thing" he beams.

"Listen here Lurch, I don't know what Brittany sees in you because frankly you look like you dress yourself in the dark and your hair line is receding so badly you'd might as well just shave it all off but make no mistake you can't compete. Sixteen hours, yeah it's exactly what you think it is and I'm sure Brittany is an amazing actress but surely even you don't believe that she's actually satisfied by your five minute speed runs. So how about you and your tiny man parts get the hell out of my face afores I end you" She speaks loudly and steps into his personal space not seeming to notice that he towers easily over her.

He stumbles over words for a moment and when he does find words they're cut off before they can be formed by a sudden snap of fingers and Sugar is bouncing down the hall towards them. As though oblivious to the tension she slips between them and wraps her arms loosely around Santana's neck though is quickly pushed aside though she merely continues on throwing the door to the apartment open yelling at Brittany to rise and shine. Her whirlwind performance concludes as she emerges with Santana's sunglasses and purse and grins at her, "time to go okay? Murder isn't on the schedule" she beams at Santana and radiates an unnatural amount of energy and Santana submits casting one long glare at him before glancing inside the apartment watching Brittany gather her things before following Sugar down the hall towards the elevator.

The ride to the interview is completely silent while Sugar hums absently, Santana stares blankly out the window. She wants to believe Brittany would never say yes to someone like that, or anyone really she isn't completely confident. Her body still screams and she shifts with discomfort every few seconds trying to find a position where tender bruises aren't being pressed against something. There's no relief and she has little time to prepare before Sugar introduces her to the woman interviewing her about Sugar's new fashion line. This is her day job, she models whatever Sugar wants her to and is thus free to keep her nightly schedule completely free for patrolling. The woman is middle aged though desperately trying to look younger, she smiles thinly at Santana as she shakes her hand and they sit down in the small room in comfortable chairs sitting across from one another with a small coffee table between them.

The interview drags for a while with polite conversation; Santana expresses her enthusiasm with the new line up, saying how honoured she is to still be the face of the franchise. She can turn this professional enthusiasm on and off at will and now she feels like she's on auto pilot. Things come to an unexpected crash however as she begins to feel light headed she stares at her lap for a second trying to focus and the next question catches her off guard.

"Are you doing anything musically lately? You released your first album and received amazing praise for it and then you seemed to disappear after the first tour, any plans to return?" She asks in a chipper tone that grinds at Santana's nerves.

She wrote the album when everything went wrong, everything happened so fast and she wound up alone and it was from that pain she had written the music. But she could never go back to that, it was hard enough to stay out of the public eye being a model and trying to patrol she didn't need to extra press. Santana stumbles at first but finds her words after a moment, "I take music seriously, I'm not really in a place where I can commit one hundred percent to writing and I don't think it's fair to the fans or the music to only do it half way, maybe sometime in the future not no I'm not working on anything now"

The interview presses on and Santana's breathing becomes faster, she can feel her temperature rising and her mouth goes dry. It's what she feels next that chills her to the bone, blood trickling down her side from the bandages. Her shirt is dark but she doesn't think she can hide it and she sends a panicked look to the door to the room Sugar is in. As though on cue the tiny fireball bursts into the room and abruptly ends the interview and once she secures the door she is calling for security. Santana watches as her vision becomes a dark tunnel that slowly closes in on itself and then everything becomes out of focus. She can vaguely hear Sugar's voice in the background and then she can feel someone lifting her up, the arms are massive and for a second her body panics and she struggles but it's useless the energy isn't there. She falls limp against a broad chest and mumbles Brittany's name.

She wakes briefly in the back of the limousine her head is on Sugar's lap and the girl is brushing out her hair anxiously. Sugar tries to talk to her but Santana cannot understand anything she is saying the pain throbbing in her ears is too much and everything slowly become black again and she slips once again out of consciousness.

When she wakes again it's like coming out of a deep sleep all of her senses are struggling to make sense of her surroundings. She can feel a gentle hand on her forehead and the scent lingering in the air is all too familiar. Her eyes flutter open slowly and she finds herself back in her apartment staring up at those ocean blue eyes filled with tears. Brittany wipes them away quickly and bends down before Santana can stop her and kisses her cheek, "you're so stupid do you know that" she questions choking out a laugh clearly happy that Santana is okay.

Santana shifts with discomfort, her body is still not completely healed, the wounds might be gone but the fatigue is there and she has put her muscles through the ringer. Santana tests her voice carefully clearing her throat before smiling gently up at Brittany, "thank you" she says softly and shifts sitting up and suddenly pulls her arms around Brittany hugging her tightly burying her face into her neck. There is no protest and Brittany clings tightly back to her exhaling with deep relief.

"You really scared me, don't do that again, just stop being so…next time just tell me" Brittany demands her voice fierce as she holds tightly onto Santana.

Santana swallows hard and buries herself deeper into Brittany unable to find the words to apologize or explain herself but she doesn't have to as the blonde sighs and relents quietly just holding on. After a moment Brittany does speak again it's soft and familiar in its cheerfulness "I dragged the tv over here, and I put in sweet valley high and I'm staying over and you're going to just have to deal with it" she demands.

She's tired of fighting so Santana merely nods and lets Brittany go turn things on while she adjusts the pillows and props herself up against the headboard. Brittany crawls back across the bed and slips beneath the blankets snuggling up against Santana. She doesn't ask if Mark popped the question or if she even knows about the argument they had this morning, she just slips her arms around Brittany and stares at the television. It feels normal, like that thing she's been missing so long she almost forgot what it felt like. Tomorrow she'll have to patrol, put the suit back on and go out and make things safe again but for tonight she gets to be normal like everyone else.


	2. Merry Snixxmas

**Little bit of a different format today going to start with some backstory done via a flashback. From now on flashbacks will be done in italics and often at the beginning. Also there were some questions wondering why Santana and Brittany are apart and I assure you it's for a good reason. Right so this is the 'Merry Snixxmas chapter' it's a bit fluffy sure but there's lots of Sugar goodness. Also a bit rushed because I have a Christmas work dinner to get to but wanted to update quickly so, compromise I might throw another chapter up tonight. **

_The rain pours from the sky in a way that used to scare her, it looks like it is never going to stop and the earth is going to flood. It's the kind of rain where a person counts themselves lucky to see two feet in front of their eyes and morbidly it's a fitting setting for a cemetery. The headstones stretch as far as the eye can see but none of them are of any concern to a soaking wet woman as she stares placidly at a pair of grave markers. The plots are fresh they don't have headstones yet but Santana didn't need to see the names to know who they were. She's been here for over an hour and by now the harsh rain has worked the blood off of her hands and face. The chill from the exposure has reached her bones but she doesn't seem to notice any of it, she simply stands and stares at the ground unsure of where to begin. Hello doesn't seem to be a word she can say, there's no greeting for this kind of conversation so she doesn't quite know how to start. _

_It isn't getting any easier and so she simply comes out with the truth, she's been honest with these people before and it served her well. "I came to say goodbye…" she chokes at the words but fights back the emotion her eyes turning skyward closing for a moment as she gathers herself. "I wanted to tell you days ago, I got this call from that producer they want me to go to the studio…my very own album. I was going to tell you but when I got home the police were there and they told me what happened" her crumbling resolve shakes and she chokes out a muffled sob bringing her hand to cover her mouth and again she is forced to bite it back. "They said it was an accident but I didn't believe them then and when that man showed up, Silver I knew it was a lie for sure. He told me all the things you kept from me, that I had these powers; you knew I was never going to be normal but you never told me," She swallows and looks away again she isn't sure where she's going with this but she needs to tell someone. At least her secrets will be safe; this isn't the goodbye she wanted. _

"_He said that some hero died, in this big city and I was supposed to take his place, that somebody found out and they wanted me dead before I could even try, as though I'd even want any of this" she swings her arms open violently and lets them fall back to her side, she's too beaten inside to fight the world anymore. Her hands come up and slide over her face she can feel the warm tears mingling with the water that pours down her face. "I lied, I told him if he gave me my powers and told me who did it I'd go the city with him and we'd go through proper channels to make sure this fucking asshole paid for what he did. I took what he gave and I ran, and I hunted the bastard down and I killed him with my bare hands…I don't remember how I came too and I was covered in blood and he was dead" her voice becomes even and unfeeling as she recalls these memories; she can't feel anything about them yet. It didn't make her feel better the way she thought it should she just felt empty. There was no one left to blame but herself, it was her curse that brought this pain to her parents. _

"_I can't be anyone's hero" she begins again lifting her chin to stare out through the rain trying to look anywhere but the small marking stones. "But I also can't stay, whatever I am, whatever I am supposed to be is dangerous. Someone wanted me gone bad enough to kill you for protecting me and I can't…" she brings her hands together tightly and pauses taking in a slow ragged breath. "I can't lose Brittany too…she's all I have left and I won't stay and let this happen to her…I can't protect her, I can't protect anyone and I won't be the reason she is hurt" she is vehement in these words, a solemn vow. She bends down and brings her fingers to her lips kissing them and then touches the markers one and then the other muttering something soft beneath her breath. These are the only goodbyes she will say, by the morning she will be gone and no one will really know why because she doesn't know how to explain. The Silver Arrow will clean up the mess she has made and she will take the out she is given for a new life, away from everything familiar, she doesn't want to remember what she doesn't have anymore. _

Santana wakes with a violent start her body shooting up from the bed her eyes growing wide with sudden panic. It takes her a moment to get a hold of her surroundings and to realize she isn't back there anymore, it was a dream. They happen more often during the holiday season and only encourage Santana not to sleep, as though she really needed the help. She quietly curses the fact that the scum that creep in the shadows of the city weren't more active this evening. Her head collapses down into her hands as she groans with frustration, every part of her feels exhausted and wide awake at the same time. She knows she won't be getting back to sleep any time soon and yet is still compelled to flop lazily back against the pillows.

As though on cue however, her attention is snatched from ideas of sleep to her cellphone noisily buzzing on the night stand next to her head. A smile curls at the corner of her mouth as a familiar name flashes across the screen and she is quick to open the message.

Brittany: I can't sleep. You awake too? We should dance.

She stares in bemusement at the screen, not because the offer itself but because Brittany managed to text her only moments after she woke up in the middle of the night. She needs the distraction and texts back a response to meet her in twenty minutes at the studio before climbing slowly out of bed. Her body seems to go into auto pilot as she finds a pair of track pants and a tank top to where and takes a few seconds to freshen up.

The drive over is uneventful she drums her fingers on the steering wheel, it's almost four in the morning and the city is blissfully sleep. She encounters no traffic though still manages to arrive a bit later than she said she would. She hears the studio before she can even get out of the car, Brittany is nothing If not loud when it comes to midnight dance sessions. The stereo thumps proudly but in the heart of a commercial district at this hour she isn't exactly disturbing anyone. Walking across the front of the studio Santana's eyes stop looking where she's going and instead they stare through the large windows at the dancing woman. Her movements are easy and fluid and she dances like it's the easiest thing in the world to do. It's mesmerizing and Santana cannot pull her gaze away as she slips inside and leans against the entrance watching Brittany work. The evidence around the room suggests Brittany has been her long before she sent Santana the text message. Empty bottles of water near the stereo, a few snacks and a general look of disorganization as though she couldn't figure out what she wanted to do. A few yoga mats are strewn on the floor and a heavy sweater discarded near a laptop.

Brittany can feel the eyes on her and stops now facing Santana her head tilted sweetly to the side. She dances her way over and extends her hands expectantly completely confident of what will happen next. Santana grabs onto her hands and lets her body be pulled into the middle of the studio instantly finding the rhythm of the music. It feels like it has been forever since they've done this, the music is so loud they can sing along as loud as they want and just have fun. Dancing with Brittany is effortless for Santana but she is constantly holding back and watching where her hands touch Brittany trying to keep them friendly but old habits die hard and it's difficult to remember her place.

It isn't Santana's body that forgets first however and it's Brittany's hands touching her hips pulling them into hers. The song is you da one by Rhianna but Santana cannot hear the words; she can't hear anything anymore her eyes are staring straight forward into deep blue and she's lost. Her heart is pounding loudly in her ears and she's forgetting how to breathe like it's the first time anyone has touched her. The song is merciful and ends allowing Santana a millisecond to pull away and she takes a few steps pulling at her loose tank top trying to remember what breathing feels like. Her skin is on fire and the straight shot of adrenaline into her core ensures she struggles to control her breathing.

Santana's only defense is to stop dancing because in a game without words she's losing and Brittany is deep inside her head. The music is turned down and Brittany doesn't let her escape as she walks over and lays down next to Santana. Her body is stretched out behind Santana and her head is resting next to Santana's folded legs. San doesn't have to look down to know that she's being stared at she can feel the penetrating gaze cutting through her. She sighs in exhaustion and pushes her legs out from under her lying down with her legs stretched out away from Brittany and her head next to hers. She doesn't look at her when she finally speaks, "what are we doing…" everything feels like it should but it's a dangerous game to start playing again.

Brittany lays in silence for a few moments her gaze never leaving Santana's face as she carefully considers the question, "dancing…I missed it. I don't like pretending that we can't be close anymore or that we're going to burst in flames if we touch" she answers finally her gaze steady on Santana's lips.

Santana exhales through her mouth nervously practically forcing the air out of her lungs and finally turns her head to look at Brittany painfully aware of how close they are laying. "You're with Mark and he might be a complete tool but…" she beings but trails off as Brittany pushes herself into a seated position twisting to face Santana.

"What if I don't want him? What if I know I don't want to marry him or I know I don't want to go to his parent's condo for Christmas? He isn't the one I want to be with San" Brittany demands her voice ringing clear over the music pinpricks of tears behind her eyes.

Santana is on her feet pushing her hands up into her hair with her eyes clamped shut trying to not scream. "I can't, we can't" she pleads looking at Brittany wanting them to go back to dancing pretending like nothing could touch them.

"Why not" Brittany's voice is soft this time and her confusion is genuine as she slowly stands up to face Santana.

"I'm dangerous to be around, people around me get hurt its bad enough that we even..." She begins but gets lost along the way as Brittany fires back before she can condemn their friendship entirely.

"I am strong, I can fight and take care of myself why won't you just let me show you" Brittany demands her slender fingers folding into tight fists.

Santana's heels dig in and without hesitation or warning she launches herself at Brittany tackling the blonde to the ground landing on top of her with one hand pressing her shoulder down and the other hovering in the air. From the palm of her hand bursts a ball of red energy it glows and crackles against the air, Santana holds it there for Brittany to see. She's beaten her easily and the blonde lays rigid on the ground her eyes growing wide. "You aren't ready and I'm not either. I can't even think straight around you I can barely breathe when you're close and I can't be distracted out there and I can't constantly be in fear that someone's going to figure out you mean everything to me. I have seen what they do and they will hurt you to hurt me and if I lose you" she begins to come unhinged. The words pour out and the energy disappears from her hand as she lets her hands both fall limply at her sides.

Brittany squirms beneath her to slowly sit up and wraps her arms around Santana's shoulders bringing her close before the tears that build in her dark eyes have a chance to fall. She knows she pushed too hard, she's more afraid of losing Santana than not truly having her and so she relents and just holds on to her. Santana's head falls against her neck and her shoulders gently shake as everything comes out, she doesn't get these moments of weakness very often.

Santana wants to believe she's crying because she's tired and that she's tired because lately sleep seems like a nice idea in theory but not something obtainable. The nightmares are bad enough but now she gets to deal with a suddenly defiant Brittany and a behemoth roaming the street looking to clip the veiled fairy's wings.

Sugar spins around in her chair, she goes around left for a while until the world starts to blur a little bit and then she spins around to the right for a while. It seems impractical from the most reasonable points of view but for her it's a perfectly acceptable way to solve problems. Mainly the little bit of information that has come across her desk. Santana often asks her to find things out for her and Sugar usually has the right connections and never has she questioned handing information over but this is different. This time she is sending Santana after the behemoth that almost killed her. It's been weeks since the incident and she's happy that Santana is back on her feet and out patrolling but she knows that look in her eye, it's the look she gets when she's looking for a fight. She becomes dizzy, too dizzy to stay in her chair and eventually her body flops off the chair onto the floor and she lays there for a while with her eyes clenched shut feeling the earth spin beneath her one way while her body feels like it's spinning the complete opposite way.

Staggering slowly to her feet she grabs the file and holds it against her chest, the boss lady would never forgive her if she hid this. She marches in a drunken stagger towards the elevator; it's a direct elevator from her 'Motta Lair' to the top floor. Inside she hums loudly drumming her fingers rapidly on the exterior of the file folder still not quite at ease with her decision. Britt Britt will be so angry with her, she practically begged her not to tell Santana where he was if she found out. She has to though, the beast is more than just a danger to the Veiled Fairy, if it got a hold of a regular person they would be lights out and not even Brittany would be able to save them. She's out of the elevator before the doors even have a chance to open fully and rushing down the hallway her small feet carrying her faster than is safe and she slams into the door heaving it open and stumbles inside swiftly kicking it shut. Santana can barely turn around to look at her from her position on the couch before Sugar is vaulting over it landing with her legs folded up like a child sitting at circle. The look of obvious irritation on Santana's face sparks a smile on her own as she thrusts the folder at the woman and then sits up straight and happy like an adored pet awaiting a reward.

She is forced to wait while Santana reads over the information and stares passively at the photos, when she's finished she smiles warmly at Sugar. It's a rare and candid moment that catches the hyper active girl off guard and she isn't sure quite how to react.

"Don't tell Brittany," Santana commands and she raises a hand in the air to silence Sugar before she can start to protest, "Sugar, you know as well as I do that it won't do good worrying her…now back down in your hidey hole and get the system up and running. No mistakes tonight" her voice is calm and confident and it feels like it's the first time Sugar has heard her sound so sure of herself in almost a week.

Sugar's eyes suddenly go the size of saucers and she reaches out grabbing at Santana's arm like a child about to be left behind, "no, you can't!" She demands suddenly terrified. She scrambles up to her knees still clinging tightly with her hands to Santana's arm while the woman stares at her like she's grown a second head. "Not alone, you need to call in the Silver Arrow he's gunna do extraction anyways and anyways Britt is supposed to be leaving on vacation this afternoon there will be nobody to heal you what if you get hurt" she rambles endlessly her words flying so quickly out of her mouth it's difficult for even Santana to keep up.

She catches enough to know what the tiny sugar addict is getting at and she's not impressed, her brow furrows as she pulls her arm from Sugar's attempted death grip. Standing she smiles confidently down at the scrawny girl, "well it's a damn good thing I don't plan on getting hurt, and if you call in the Silver asshole I swear I will go all Lima Heights on your ass, do not test me Sugar" she threatens with a sly smirk and then waves the girl off before going to change into the Veiled Fairy.

Sugar slinks off the couch slowly dragging her feet towards the door and stepping outside she heaves her body across the hall dramatically collapsing against the elevator, "what to do" she mutters under her breath before giving a mournful look towards the door. "Sorry boss lady…the cavalry is coming" she gives a determined nod, sticks her tongue out at the door and stalks off down the hall with her head held high despite the deep seeded fear of an impending beating looming over her head.

The Veiled Fairy leans out against the wind her eyes drifting closed as she takes in the moment before descent. There's a strange peaceful quality to her before her body begins to drop and she straightens out shooting downward towards the ground. Her eyes open watching the ground rush towards her and a confident smile creeps across her lips as they slowly part. The laughter coming from her is honest as she spreads her arms and straightens out her course landing on the rooftop of a nearby building. This is her favorite part of patrolling it's a moment of freedom, there's something about rushing towards the ground that gets her every time. Tonight however she needs the shot of adrenaline more than she's willing to admit and soon she's racing across the buildings. Her ability to fly is under developed, she can manage short flights and usually can use her voice to prolong them if needed but it's not something she's willing to test at length.

She detours from her chosen path and finds herself standing on the roof across from Brittany's dance studio. It's quiet and empty, on most nights she can see Brittany inside practicing or teaching a last minute 'emergency' class. But for once it's a ghost town and she bitterly nods her head and turns away. It's habit to make sure Brittany has a safe way home even if that means stalking from the shadows and taking out threats before Britt ever realizes she's in danger. Santana craves the knowledge that the woman is safe but tonight it isn't an option so she has to soldier on and pretend it doesn't eat her up inside to not know.

Protocol and precedence have been thrown out the window for every other aspect of the patrol however as the Veiled Fairy takes a straight shot towards the warehouse district. It's a cliché spot for any abomination to hide out but in a way that's what she likes about her less intelligent prey, they're predictable. Things will be different this time, the last encounter the behemoth got the drop on her and she was never able to find her footing. She spies the building Sugar pointed out earlier and can already hear the creature from her position.

The Veiled Fairy has learned a lot about fighting since she began in this city; an important lesson was to use her strengths to her advantage. Her body melts into the shadows they cover her entirely as she sneaks around the building looking for an opportune way inside. She finds it in an opened window, easily reached with a quick hop and to her luck her prey is so distracted with another toy it doesn't hear her. She drops silently into the warehouse blending in against the back wall to survey her surroundings, Sugar's report only detailed the exterior of the building, everything inside was a mystery until now.

The lighting is limited and this plays into Santana's hand, the beast is currently throwing around a low level thug from a local gang likely sent out to clear out the behemoth. It's a suicide errand and Santana almost feels bad for the thug…almost. She lets him get in a few more good shots before she comes in for the rescue. Her movements are quick and acrobatic as she moves across the floor and slides landing the heel of her boot directly into the back of the Behemoth's leg. She doesn't hesitate and easily kicks upwards landing another sharp blow to the other leg before getting to her feet. The sudden attack staggers the beast his knees buckle and with her opponent on his knees the Veiled Fairy doesn't hesitate she spins letting her foot connect with the side of the monster's head.

He howls as he topples sideways gripping his skull, his movements are slow and he didn't have time to react to any of the hits. To his surprise Santana lets him stagger to his feet and when he turns his eyes grow wide when he sees who it is. He pounds his fist into the side of his head grinning like a dog with a bone, "little doll came back to play, time to crush its spine" he calls confidently readying himself still. Santana offers a calm smile as she darts forward deliberate in her attack jumping towards him though never showing any signs of attack. The Behemoth takes this opportunity to catch her by the arm and to throw her into some deteriorated scaffolding. He grins with success until he realizes he doesn't know where she went.

As the beast approach Santana slips quietly to the side maneuvering around a large concrete pillar to get behind him as he begins to dig through the wrecked pile of metal where he was sure he saw her land. Without skipping a beat she is on him scaling his large body and wrapping her arms around his neck as though she intended to choke him out, but's it's not his neck she is after. Her lips linger around his ear and she pulls in a deep breath before unleashing a deadly shriek the pitch and energy behind the attack make the Behemoth drop like boulder screaming in pain as the blood drips from his ear. Its arm flails out catching her off guard and sending her stumbling back across the floor, she somersaults backwards to get to her feet and steadies herself.

The behemoth makes its way to its feet with all the grace of a drunkard, one hand clutched to its head which it shakes violently trying to clear the ringing agony. Santana moves slowly pulling a device similar to a cattle prod out from her belt and turns it on smiling as it buzzes with energy. The beast stomps its feet and charges headlong at the Veiled Fairy, she mirrors his actions running right at him. This time however she takes the low road sliding across the floor on her knees under thunderous legs. At the last second she jams the device skyward catching the Behemoth between the legs. She stands and delivers the final blow pressing the device to the massive neck of her prey. He shakes violently for a moment before landing on the ground unconscious but alive, a courtesy she doubted he would have shown her.

She takes a moment to catch her breath and put her toy away she brings her hands together cracking her knuckles before a voice crackles across the radio frequency into her ears. It's Sugar, "Sanny get out of there unless you want a reunion with big Silver" she pleads the guilt radiating across the airwaves into Santana's ear. Santana should be annoyed but somehow not having to secure the goon for transport is a relief she isn't in the mood for heavy lifting not after being thrown into scaffolding anyways. She's gone before they arrive leaving no trace of her ever being there except the damaged and unconscious heap on the concrete.

The rest of the patrol is uneventful and Santana is grateful to be making her way back to Motta Towers. She expects to find it dark and quiet like everything else but all of the lights are on in the penthouse. She approaches with more suspicion than caution and enters to find things rather different than when she first left. Brittany is standing in the kitchen with Sugar, they both have a glass of wine in their hands and they look quite proud of themselves. The apartment is completely decorated for Christmas complete with a tree and presents. Santana doesn't even own any decorations but she knows where all of it came from, the pretty blonde girl beaming brightly at her.

Santana sighs and removes the mask staring in exhausted disbelief at the two of them, "did it occur to you that I hadn't decorated for a reason" she inquires raising a brow. She removes her gloves and the heavy utility belt all the while watching Sugar shrink behind Brittany who is unabashedly proud of herself.

Brittany places the wine glass down on the counter top and marches easily across the apartment towards Santana, "yes, you have no Christmas spirit and I know why" her voice is gentle and a direct contrast to the intensity in her eyes. Sugar scrambles rapidly in the background scooping a handful of shortbread cookies into her eager hands before she makes a swift b-line towards the tree to sit and pretend to be busy. Santana doesn't notice she's lost in the blue eyes that are intensely bearing down upon her.

"You think Christmas is just for people with families, you don't think you deserve to be celebrating anymore but you're wrong. You have me and Sugar and we love you and your parents would want you to be happy" Brittany speaks confidently, she's the only person in the entire world who gets away with that kind of honesty about Santana's life with Santana. Her hands reach out and take Santana's holding them tightly in her own as she leans forward to place a kiss against her forehead. "Plus I made you cookies and I bought you a present so you can't say no" the logic is flawed and full of holes but she says it with such joyous conviction that Santana can only smile and laugh.

"You're supposed to be…" Santana begins to speak before Brittany swoops in and interrupts her suddenly.

"Right here, I know what you said at the studio. But I know that you're hurting and even if some things have changed I'm still your friend and that hasn't changed so get used to it because I'm not going anywhere and I'm not letting you run away anymore" Brittany explains before letting go of Santana's hands and pulling her tightly into a hug.

Santana's body melts easily against Brittany her arms wrapping tightly around the blonde girl feeling like she doesn't want to let go. She's tired of running and more than that she's exhausted by the effort of pretending she doesn't want things to go back the way they were before everything fell apart.


	3. worst case scenario

She stumbles in out of the storm, her body practically falling through the window an act that sends her tumbling across the hardwood floor where she lays for a moment. The night has taken its toll on her body though it's nothing a good night's sleep won't cure but therein lays the problem. It's partially that by the time she gets in these days it's almost daybreak but mostly that sleep won't come anymore. Part of her misses the constant nightmares at least she could fall asleep then but now like everything else in her life it's gone and fucked itself up.

She undresses leaving the suit strewn across the apartment and hauls her body into the shower to warm up. The water burns against her freezing skin though she can hardly bring herself to flinch, it's too much effort and her body has gone far past the point of exhaustion. Her mind won't shut down though and the more she tries to calm it down the more overwhelming her thoughts become. She's trying to find some solace beneath the hot water but she can't turn the thoughts off. Bad guys, good guys, Brittany, work, Brittany and a whole lot more of Brittany. It feels like such a high school problem to be so damn stuck on a girl but there it is.

The sensor installed in the window suddenly beeps and Santana can hear heavy boots thud on the floor and she knows who it is. Unfortunately for him she's in no mood to play nice, her hand flails blindly at the tap until the shower head dies off but she makes no hurry to get out. She's deliberately slow at grabbing the towel and wrapping it around her torso and takes extra time digging around in the medicine cabinet. She emerges moments later and eyes the irritating ginger sitting on her couch wearing the pretentious scowl of derision.

"You have five minutes before I throw you out the window" Santana mutters glowering at him as she walks slowly over to the dresser and carefully slides the middle drawer out staring absently into it.

"Pleasant evening to you as well Miss Lopez, the council would like you to look into a matter" his voice is smooth and authoritative, he's all business but it only serves as further irritation to Santana who isn't looking to be told what to do at three in the morning.

She doesn't answer but merely drops her towel without warning and begins dressing in pajama bottoms and a t-shirt almost looking content as she pretends he isn't there. His face goes scarlet as he looks away and tries to clear his throat but again she continues her routine unbothered by his presence. Her fingers wrestle with the pill bottle until she gets the top off and she stares dully inside at the remaining sleeping pills. It's the only way she gets any rest these days but even that sleep doesn't leave her feeling all that rested.

"Large number of deaths…" He flips absently through a file folder seemingly disinterested in the content, he drones on like it's an everyday occurrence.

"Sounds like a job for the cops, people get murdered all the time, they just fall sometimes out of really high windows, or are pushed because they can't take a hint. It happens. What does it have to do with me?" Santana finally engages the conversation before popping sleeping pill into her mouth swallowing it with a slight grimace.

"They appear to be sacrificial cult killings. Victims all show significant blood loss and have been branded…oh and they all happen to be women with blonde hair and blue eyes do I have your god damn attention yet Miss Lopez?" His voice raises as he throws the folder down on the table, "you're a hero, act like it for once" she can't speak he's already gone storming out the window and towards the ground.

The sleep was dreamless and the pills only seemed to work for a few hours and she spends the entire day trying to sleep in various places around the apartment but nothing seems to work. She goes to the gym to try and exhaust her body further but returns home even more agitated than before.

Night falls blanketing the city in darkness and Santana leaves Motta Towers as the Veiled Fairy, however distracted and exhausted she might be she remembers what was said to her and her priorities fall into place. She walks Brittany home though the blonde doesn't know it, Brittany is walking on the sidewalk or at least partially walking, she's half dancing to the music playing from headphones carelessly placed in her ears. She's oblivious to danger it's somehow just as endearing as it is irritating to Santana.

Santana walks across the tops of buildings her eyes constantly moving and looking for anyone else in the shadows. She lingers briefly after Brittany enters into the small home she shares with Mark, he's sitting on the couch watching something on the television and she walks in and flops down next to him, Santana has no interest in seeing what happens next. She's home safe and that's enough for now or at least it used to be.

Something churns in her stomach and she can't get them out of her head, girls like Brittany probably go missing all the time but this time feels different. She knows the council isn't the biggest fan of hers, she's supposed to want to protect everyone but in truth it's hard to make her care about the rest of the world. She's as selfish as she has always been; getting a great amount of power hasn't changed the fact that she's driven by her own needs and desires. She just wants to make sure a certain girl stays safe and oblivious to the danger, or at least that's how it used to be. Now she wants to wrap her hands around the neck of a certain guy named Mark and squeeze until his eyes roll back into his head. Not sleeping is making her irritable and it brings out her darker qualities, jealousy being a very dominant one.

It's as she starts to walk away from the house that she sees something that sets off an alarm inside of her head. A guy, he probably looks like any other normal person, he's waiting at a bus stop tapping his foot to music blasting from headphones. It's where he's looking that's part of the problem which is right at Brittany's house and it's the look in his eyes that seals his fate. She knows that look, it's the look a man lost in a desert gives an oasis. He's found the jackpot, or so he thinks.

Santana is on him before he has a chance to react she grabs him from behind pulling him into the shadows. She doesn't intend on asking him any questions she's hear to send a message. Her arm has slipped under his throat and she's got him in a fairly snug choke hold. "If you scream, I'll snap your neck. If I ever see you near that girl again I'll torture you until you wish I'd just snapped your neck" the threats are idle she's not supposed to kill people and this boy is a small fish in a pond of piranhas. She lets him go shoving him forward and she disappears into the warm hug of the shadows.

The boy stares wide eyed at the space where he thought she was supposed to be, he spins around once or twice. He doesn't know that she's staring right back at him, all he sees are shadows so he does what any scared little boy does, he runs home.

Santana follows close enough to keep an eye on him but not so close that he notices she's there though she suspects this one is thick enough in the skull that she could walk behind him and she'd still lead her to the hideout. He's doing what every good little minion does he's reporting home to the bosses to tell them something is wrong.

He runs deep into suburbia to an upper middleclass neighborhood and to an idealistic looking house, white picket fence and all. She watches from afar as he circles around back and goes in through the cellar door.

The lack of sleep is making Santana reckless or at least impatient as she follows in after him without even taking a second to secure the cellar door open. Sugar is howling concern in her ear but it's silenced as Santana shuts off radio communication. She creeps down the stairs after him her body easily hiding in the shadows.

The basement of the house is dimly lit but Santana can see a group of about ten men, not one of them over the age of thirty standing around a very tall and very blonde woman. She's beautiful to be certain but there's something about her that doesn't sit well in Santana's stomach. The boy she threatened is whispering to her frantically and her icy eyes move about the room suspiciously. As her eyes settle on the spot where Santana hides her lips curl up in a gnarled smile. The illusion of beauty is shattered at the sight of sharp, jagged and twisted teeth attached to jet black gums.

The Veiled Fairy knows when she has been seen and so she bolts from her hiding spot a crackling ball of red energy building in the palm. With a quick hit the first of the goons is writhing on the ground holding the spot on his chest where she hit him. She turns on a group of four and sucks in a gasp of air before sending it back out as an ear piercing banshee shriek. It comes as a wall of energy and soon they too are incapacitated on the ground but they're not her concern.

The exhaustion has made her sloppy and she's turned her back to the blonde amazon woman and it is a mistake she instantly regrets. She can hear one of the men in the background shouting, 'rip her heart out Arachne' shortly before the demon woman tackled her from behind.

Santana lands on the ground with a thud but before she can turn over Arachne is on her digging sharp fingers into her arms and it begins to feel cold. Her skin feels like it's freezing under the woman's touch and before she can move the woman's gnarled teeth are biting into the space where her neck meets shoulder. The scream that comes out of Santana's mouth is primal and uncontrolled she writhes painfully beneath Arachne.

The scream is enough however as Arachne grabs her ears covering them in agony and Santana seizes the moment scrambling out from under her hands. She flips onto her back and while back pedaling sends her foot upward catching her assailant under the chin sending her reeling backwards. Getting to her feet Santana brings her hands together forming the familiar red energy between her palms. Her hands stretch apart molding the crackling crimson into a blade.

The door to the cellar flies open and Santana can already hear the Silver Arrow and his group of merry minions skipping down the steps. She doesn't care, this woman ripped her skin open and did god knows what to her insides with an icy touch, she stands over Arachne ready to strike. The blade comes down but never meets its target as the Silver Arrow has her by the arm holding her inches from putting the woman's head on a pretty red spike.

It's frustration she's screaming with now and she turns swinging a clenched fist into the chiselled jaw of her supposed mentor. He stumbles a few steps backwards and vaults forward grabbing her by the shoulder his fingers squeezing over the spot the woman touched her. The sensitive skin erupts in pain that pulses up her arm making Santana grind her teeth tightly together. He shoves her away and towards the door and in frustration she slams the still ready blade into wall letting it slice cleanly through the concrete before disappearing leaving a scorched hole.

She's been pacing outside of Brittany's house for about ten minutes now the irritation of being treated like a child somehow dulled by the throbbing pain in her neck and shoulder. Combined with the fact that no matter what she does her body won't warm itself back up and it still feels like the icy hands are wrapped around her biceps.

"Are you going to come inside?" a voice finally breaks the silence and Santana looks up to see Brittany leaning in the doorway to the house. She's dressed in her pajamas leaning against the door with her arms folded over her chest. "He isn't here... he left about an hour ago" Brittany finally admits when Santana doesn't move from the street.

Santana finally moves towards the house her feet carrying her quietly across the threshold brushing past Brittany as she enters the quiet house. She doesn't get far before Brittany grabs her hand squeezing it securely and then she's being led into the living room and the lights are flicked on. Santana winces at the sudden light but is distracted as Brittany reaches up and takes the mask off her face.

Santana doesn't move or react her eyes are steady on Brittany's watching her as she studies the new wounds on Santana's body. This is nothing new she is injured all the time but it's the intense look on Brittany's face that has her attention.

Brittany's hand gently presses to Santana's temple tilting her head to one side exposing the wound more but it's difficult to see. Her hand flattens against the deep teeth marks all of her attention focusing on one hole after another until the skin feels warm and soft beneath her palm.

"Take it off" Brittany demands suddenly nodding at Santana not seeming the least bit aware of what she has just asked.

Santana chokes suddenly on the air and a quick smile grows on her lips and dies quickly as she narrows her gaze onto Brittany's completely serious blue eyes that stare impatiently back at her, "excuse me?" is all she can manage to spit out.

"You lied last time, your skin is freezing cold so I know something is wrong so just stop being difficult and take it off" She demands folding her arms defensively over her chest.

Santana shifts in discomfort for a moment not feeling exactly in control of her emotions at the moment, frustration is already biting at her heels and Brittany is only standing there in her pajamas. Brilliant, less clothes would certainly help her cause.

Slowly Santana reaches and unlocks the zipper and slides it down her arms letting the top half fall back against her legs. She has a bra on but somehow feels like she's wearing nothing at all more so due to the suddenly less than innocent look swimming in Brittany's eyes.

She watches the blonde open her mouth to speak but say nothing instead Brittany edges forward suddenly far less confident about her decision. Her hands are trembling gently as she brings them up to the dark blue looking bruises on Santana's arms. Upon touching them though her hands jump back at the sensation of how cold her skin is.

"It's like ice" Brittany notes dragging a finger gently down the mark and sending a violent shiver down Santana's spine that causes every muscle in her body to go rigid. She doesn't stop her hands smooth back over the bruises her bright blue eyes staring intensely as she works.

Santana's mind has gone into overdrive now, the little pieces of her that hold her impulses at bay are crumbling. Finally it happens and her mind stops going a mile a minute and everything just shuts off for a second. She leans in and catches Brittany off guard pressing her lips smoothly against her mouth. She doesn't stop there, she steps into the space that was between them and draws her hands up against Britt's hips tracing her thumbs along the tops of her hip bones.

Brittany's lips part smoothly a soft moan escaping before she pushes forward letting their lips collide again and her arms wrap around Santana's neck. Her chest heaves eagerly in anticipation every muscle twitching towards Santana.

It becomes messy and chaotic as Santana's hands slide down to the back of Brittany's thighs before quickly picking her up and the blonde doesn't miss a beat wrapping those longer dancer legs around Santana's waist.

The journey is quick to the couch but even for a physically worn down version of her body it's easy to carry Brittany and lay her down. She buries her lips deep down in the crook of Brittany's neck leaving a trail of kisses and nips exploring the once all too familiar canvas.

Brittany's chest arches upwards a ragged groan of need falling shamelessly from her lips while her hands scramble down desperately undoing the Veiled Fairy's utility belt. As it comes loose Santana reaches and grabs it tossing it onto the floor where it lands with a heavy thud.

Impatience takes over as Santana is pulling at the bottom of Brittany's tank top pulling away for a second so it can be removed and the moment of pause gives clarity and her dark eyes meet warm blue pools of passion. She can't breathe let alone think about consequence and she can only give a small smile.

Brittany's hand slides into a tangle of raven locks pulling Santana back down to her taking her lower lip between her teeth biting it gently smiling at the small shiver of pleasure that runs down Santana's spine. Santana's mouth opens as she purrs out a sensual moan and Brittany seizes the opportunity letting her tongue flick out dancing innocently against Santana's.

Reality slides back into Santana's consciousness as she can distantly hear a rhythmic vibrating where her utility belt is on the floor. She pulls with reluctance from the kiss her eyes wide with a mix of confusion and deep horror which causes Brittany to posture up onto her elbows and stare in confusion at Santana.

"San?" She questions softly brushing long raven locks behind her ear, "What's wrong?" she coos gently watching as Santana stares in disbelief for a second.

"It's….don't move" she commands quickly stepping off of the couch and rushing over to the belt where she kneels down rapidly searching through it until she finds what she wants. She pulls the small ear piece up and her voice is shaking with the words, "Sugar?" she calls nervously into the radio.

The silence is piercing but not as bad as the sudden flood of sobs coming from the other end and a long string of "please help, please, Santana…" and then the radio crackles with dead waves and the blood freezes in her veins.

Santana is up pulling on the upper part of her suit, her eyes flash over to Brittany where the girl sits with her knees drawn to her chest her eyes wide and scared the way Santana's were when she heard the buzz. It wasn't any regular signal it was emergency, it was class five nothing good is happening emergency. "I…" she begins as she pulls the gloves back over her hands but is stopped as Brittany stands up and shakes her head quickly.

The blonde approaches grabbing the forgotten mask off the floor and leans in kissing Santana's lips quickly, "go…please I'll be right here when you get back…" her words are trembling as they fall from her lips and the tears are already tracking down her cheeks.

Santana is gone before the mask is even on her face she's struggling to fasten the belt with terrified fingers as she rushes down the street moving as fast as possible. She doesn't understand the fear that's settled in her chest, sure deep down she adores Sugar the girl is hyper and helpful but she never thought she cared all that much about her. Something in her brain came to life as the small helpless voice on the other end begged her though, something primal and instinctive.

Her body knows the way she doesn't have to think about it her muscles and skills carry her to Motta towers and she is flying in the entrance without fear of being discovered. Her lithe legs carry her to the private elevator where she tears the glove off and presses her palm to the sensor. The doors open and she darts inside her fingers jamming against the button for Sugar's secret lair repeatedly as she silently wills the doors to close faster.

Her body hums with tension as she paces nervously as the elevator moves down below ground level and as the system chimes and the doors open she's squeezing through before they're fully open. She stops dead in her tracks seeing Sugar sitting in front of the collection of monitors typing madly away at the console perfectly safe.

"Are you fucking kidding me!" she screams grabbing the nearest item which happens to be one of the many spinning computer chairs Sugar has broken over the years and launches it towards the screens. Sugar is barely turning in her chair before it's smashing into the highest screens sending glass and the chair itself tumbling down towards her.

Instinctively she kicks the chair backwards tumbling out of it rolling across the floor as Santana charges at her grabbing her roughly around the collar of her shirt. "Did you think that was funny?" she demands bringing her fist back the look of hatred pressed firmly against her features.

"No! What are you talking about I didn't do anything!" Sugar defends pulling her arms in front of her face.

"You sent S.O.S, major danger and screamed at me to come save you!" Santana yells her entire body shaking with anger.

"I didn't! I couldn't! The system has been fried since you went into that cellar! No camera, no microphone, no radio, no gps, nothing I swear I've been trying to fix it for an hour now!" She screeches throwing her hand towards the screen to ward Santana's rage someplace else.

Santana stalks over to the monitors dragging Sugar along with her and she pauses staring at the screens they're all black with white messages reading "No signal" or "error". She looks down at the laptop Sugar had been using and reads the screen, "rebooting system, time elapsed 01:16:05, time remaining: 05:20:55".

She feels flustered and lets Sugar go and begins checking her equipment, none of it seems to be damaged, in fact it all appears on and working. The feeling of ice in her veins returns and it's coupled with the sensation that she just might be suddenly and violently ill.

"Brittany…"


	4. The Devil You Know

**SO fast little update here my laptop's hard drive died today so it is off for repairs for the next week so I will be borrowing one this week and as such I might not be as fast updating but I will do my very best. Coincidentally it's also why the last one was again a little rushed my laptop was getting progressively worse so I was busy backing up things and trying to finish up. **

**Next! Thank you guys so much I am completely flattered that anyone has read these and the reviews have been very helpful and quite sweet so thank you very much. The feedback is greatly appreciated. **

…

She left Sugar terrified on the floor shaking and for once in her life completely silent staring at the doorway through which Santana disappeared. Santana ran through the streets, she didn't take to the buildings leaping and manoeuvring with any measure of grace it was just her and her feet on the pavement. She couldn't remember how to do any of it, she just needed to know she was alright her mind could imagine nothing but that thought. The need to know because she felt it somewhere deep inside her chest that something was not right.

Her lungs screamed inside of her chest to the point where she could taste blood in her sharp inhales and exhales. The muscles in her legs had a shrieking chorus of their own and they shook with the exertion of not only going full speed across town once but back again having already spent her energy patrolling. Her eyes burned from a lack of sleep and every muscle wanted her to stop, to slow down but she wouldn't she charged forward pressing towards the house.

A block away she begins to feel dizzy and then like someone has settled a fog in over her thoughts she can't hear herself think. She can see the door to the house and the windows, everything is dark and the neighbourhood feels too silent even for the late hour. As she gets closer all she can see is the door her eyes won't pull away from it even if she tries.

She's going too fast to stop her hand reaches out to grab the door knob and twist it to barrel through but she's forced to collapse into it as the door jams against the lock and won't budge. She panics and begins beating the side of her fist against the door and she's shouting but she can't even hear what she's saying.

Her actions become desperate and she repeatedly slams her shoulder into the heavy unmoving door her body numb to the pain as it spreads down her arm. The lock begins to give the door frame begins to crack and splinter as she relentlessly tries to force the door open.

With a loud crack the door finally swings violently inward, sending Santana in after it stumbling and ultimately landing hard on her knees in the main hall. Her hands come down to catch herself before she falls forward one of her arms gives violently out but she can't think about the pain now, because it isn't important.

She pulls the hurt arm against her chest and gets to her feet faster than she should because her head is swimming now and every inch of her suddenly wants her to leave. The fear grips tightly inside of her chest as she catches something out of the corner of her eye. She turns towards the living room and stops moving. All of the emotion leaves her face for a second her breathing become shallow little gasps before her features twist in slow agony. Her mouth opens to scream but there's nothing, nothing comes out at all.

…

"_Tell me a secret" Brittany asks her as she cradles the bottle against her chest, her cheeks are rosy red and her eyes glassy and full of naïve wonder. _

_Santana leans back against the headboard her mouth pursed as she considers the request, she has this wonderful feeling of freedom inside of her as though she could do absolutely anything in the world. She finally shrugs her shoulders falling into unexplained giggling and takes the bottle from Brittany giving her a playful wink as Brittany begins to pout. _

_The blonde is relentless and slips up onto her knees edging across the bed and pokes at Santana's flat stomach as she tries to drink, "come on tell me" she whines unable to contain the bright smile burgeoning across her face. _

"_Fine! Alright!" Santana laughs shaking her head and wiping the alcohol that has dribbled down her chin with the pad of her thumb because of Brittany's impromptu assault, "You are….my best friend in the whole world and I love you" she beams clearly impressed._

_Brittany gives a look of disapproval and falls down on the bed next to Santana wrapping her arms around her waist and shakes her a few times, "that's not a secret everyone knows that, even Lord Tubbington knows that and we aren't talking right now because I found him with a pack of cigarettes…smoking is gross" she announces the last bit and stares pointedly at Santana. _

_Santana knows this is a silent warning from Brittany and she grins scrunching her nose at the girl, "I solemnly swear not to follow in Lord Tubbington's foot…er paw prints, cross my heart. Fine a secret. OK I have a secret" she grows a bit quiet now her smile becoming genuine and soft. "I want to kiss you" she says finally her gaze growing cautious as she stares down at the blonde who is now partially hugging her around her midsection. _

_Brittany eases up so she is kneeling on the bed and takes the bottle away from Santana and slides it onto the night stand. "Okay do it," she says and smiles confidently at Santana feeling none of the nervous energy that is quietly building inside of Santana. _

_Santana bites her lip indecisively for a moment and then shrugs her shoulders brings her hand up to gently cradle her best friend's face and she moves in slow her eyes finding Brittany's as she leans in. At the last second Brittany's eyes close and she moves suddenly forward pressing her lips against Santana's. It's soft and wonderful and Santana's eyes shut and her entire body seems to relax suddenly. They kiss with slow passion a few times neither one seeming to want to pull away. _

_It's Brittany who finally does; she stays close her eyes trained on Santana's lips seemingly entranced by them. She beams suddenly confidently as she begins to speak, "can I tell you a secret?" she pauses waiting for Santana to nod slowly to her, "I really like kissing you" she admits and seems incredibly proud when Santana is grinning wildly back at her. _

…**.**

She can't move, her body has become immobile with fear as her mouth hangs open and the tears stream silently down her face. She stares through the tears at the body in the middle of the living room, blonde hair played out in a pool of crimson that coats the floor. She finds her voice suddenly and quietly it comes out hushed and broken, "Brittany…." It doesn't feel real. All she can hear are her own tiny gasping breaths as she tries to will herself to move, to do anything.

Time seems to slow and she blinks away the tears that build and make it hard to see though she doesn't want to see it. She doesn't want to know that her chest isn't moving and her skin is the kind of pale it isn't supposed to be.

She swallows hard and takes a step forward and then the silence goes away and it's replaced with voices that she's heard before. They're loud like on a speaker turned all the way up and they feel more real than the memories she thinks they are.

"You're supposed to be a hero, that city you're supposed to protect? People are dying every day and you're too selfish to even care. Honestly is there anyone in this world you do care about?"

"Miss Lopez? Please sit down, it's about your parents there's been an accident…"

"You can't admit to everybody that you're in love with Brittany and she might not love you back"

"Please say you love me back"

"This is your fault; your filthy sin brought this upon our family"

"It's Brittany she's in the hospital she was just attacked on the street; we told her that city was too dangerous"

"I can't lose Brittany too…she's all I have left and I won't stay and let this happen to her…I can't protect her, I can't protect anyone and I won't be the reason she is hurt"

"I came back and I swear I will never, ever let anything bad happen to you ever again. I'm so sorry"

The voices are loud and they repeat over and over again as she walks forward her hands come to touch her ears but it doesn't silence them they become overwhelming and she is about to scream when suddenly they stop and she's standing over Brittany.

She gets down on her knees but she's afraid to touch her, there's so much blood and she's so pale she doesn't need to, to know she is gone. "Brittany please no, please? Wake up, wake up because I can't do this alone, you can't just leave you have to wake up" she pleads her hands hovering inches above Brittany's chest but she can't touch, her hands shake but they wont move. Her arms retract and wrap around her stomach as she begins to sob the words flowing from her mouth but they stop making sense as she pleads for her to come back. The last is choked and broken, "I love you, please" but there's nothing just silence to greet her pleas.

A voice finally breaks the silence it's stern and unfeeling and familiar, "She isn't coming back, she isn't going to magically heal herself, death is one of those finite things once you're there…you're there" Mark says appearing in the doorway from the kitchen. He eyes Brittany for a moment and then shrugs his shoulders turning his attention back to the girl crying on the floor.

"I didn't want to kill her you know, it's unfortunate she really was a nice girl, it was you I wanted dead. Not an uncommon thought you're kind of an unfeeling bitch. You see I get into people's heads it's my gift, it's pretty for torture but I couldn't quite get into your mind. You spend so much god damn time lying to yourself and building up impossible walls it's a fucking maze in there and honestly I doubt you even know the truth about who you are anymore" He explains passively adjusting the sleeves of his suit, fiddling with his cufflinks and shrugging his broad shoulders.

"But Brittany well her mind is, or was, a bit of a glass house and after you completely shattered her heart by abandoning her well it was easy to swoop in and pick up the pieces. No she'd never tell me your secrets outright but she thinks about you all the time, she worries and wonders and after a while I got to thinking. If you're all she thinks about, I wonder if it works both ways, turns out it does." He continues speaking while moving around the room tidying up a bit and then grabbing the long, sharp, bloodied knife off of the coffee table.

"You were supposed to keep her safe; funny that she's the only person you actually want to protect but you've failed her so many times it's kind of pathetic. It's sad that she has to pay for your sins, and you have sinned. It was sweet she thought you were going to come and save her, big blue eyes so fucking hopeful that her hero would make it in time. But you didn't and the last thing she did was apologize to you, she was sorry for telling me your secrets, it's pathetic. You never deserved her and she still believed in you." He's yelling at her now standing over her holding the knife out at her but she isn't moving.

"My brother, you'll remember him because he killed your parents and then you killed him. They say an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind but I don't want to blind you Santana I just want you dead and you don't have a soul left in the world who actually cares about you so I think I'll be okay" He continues with a wry smirk clinging to his thin lips.

"Just do it" Santana says finally her eyes staring down at Brittany, her voice is even and emotionless as she speaks. When he doesn't say anything at first she lifts her eyes at him they're hollow and she continues "do it or I will."

"What's the matter Santana? No fight left? Where the fuck is snixx huh? You are a fucking coward" He yells and raises his foot kicking her backwards. She falls back against the hard wood floor but gets up and walks towards him and screams "Just do it!"

She can hear something in the background it sounds so distant and far away but she can't focus on anything else. The room has become her entire existence and she can't think of anything else. She shakes the sounds away, the banging and voices she should know but can't seem to remember.

Mark's mood shifts and he forces the handle of the blade into her palm closing her fingers around it and bringing the blade up to her throat, "Go ahead then" he encourages pressing her hand down so the blade bites lightly at her skin.

His hand falls away and hers begins to shake and she brings her other hand up to try and steady it her chest heaving in and out in fast nervous breaths. She's staring down at Brittany's body on the floor and her eyes shut tightly.

Suddenly there are hands on her, grabbing onto her hands and it feels like she's being pulled from a dream and the voice in her ear is one she knows well it's pleading and begging and choked with tears. "Santana stop!" it finally rings through and her eyes open wide and the scene has changed.

There's no body or blood on the floor, the voice in her ear and the hands over her hands are Brittany's. The Silver Arrow is behind her his hands withdrawing from where they had covered her neck to try and protect her. Mark is there in front of her his eyes wide in disbelief the dark energy flowing from his hands slowly stops as he freezes staring at Santana.

She pushes past the people around her and she's out of their reach before they can stop her the knife is turned around the other way now. She lunges into Mark plunging the knife into his abdomen as they fall but she doesn't stop she postures up on him and continues the assault. The Silver arrow rushes over and tries to grab her hands but she shoves him away violently sending him reeling and continues the act.

It's Brittany again who grabs her and pulls her off of him holding her against her chest and pulls the knife from her fingers letting it drop to the ground. Her body is shaking worse than Santana's as she holds her from behind tightly, afraid to let go.

Santana comes undone in great heaving sobs her body turns and curls against Brittany's clinging tightly to her. Brittany's arms are strong as they hold onto her tightly keeping her on her feet and stroking her hair.

She doesn't hear what they're saying, but she can make out the Silver Arrow's voice in the background it's soft and reasonable and scared. His hands are cautious as they touch Santana's shoulders but he isn't speaking to her, it isn't her he's trying make see reason it's Brittany. She has a tight grip on Santana, it's protective.

Brittany pulls back a few inches and tries to find Santana's eyes but her stare is vacant, "we're taking you home now okay?" she asks but there's no response just more tears streaming down Santana's face.

…

Santana is complacent as they bring her back to the studio apartment she doesn't say anything or resist as they load her into the back of a car or bring her upstairs. She stares at the ground for most of it seeming lost among her thoughts.

At the door to the apartment Brittany thanks the Silver Arrow but turns away his help asking only that he explain things to Sugar and suggests she might be able to get more information of Santana's equipment. He stares down at her mask in his hands and walks quietly away.

Brittany brings Santana into the bathroom and leans her back against the counter grabbing a cloth she takes her hands and cleans off the blood slowly. She helps her get changed into pajamas. She hasn't said a word or looked at Brittany since they left the house but her eyes lift slowly finding Brittany's and the words are simple but speak loudly, "I thought I lost you."

She brings her hands up slowly to cup the sides of Santana's face and leans in kissing her forehead gently holding her lips there for a long moment before pulling her into a tight embrace, "I'm right here" she reminds her and squeezes tightly.

After a while Brittany pulls slowly away and opens the medicine cabinet taking out a few bottles and gives Santana a worried look, "you need to sleep, I could only heal so much but you need the rest" she explains trying to make Santana understand. It shouldn't be hard the woman can barely hold herself up and struggles to keep her eyes open.

Santana opens her hand willingly and takes the sleeping pills from Brittany and pops them into her mouth swallowing quickly. "You'll be here when I get up?" she asks quietly looking up at Brittany. Her mind is having trouble believing she is really there. Everything in that world Mark had her in seemed real, it felt like she had lost everything and even if it was untrue it was difficult to shake the emotions.

Brittany nods slowly and takes Santana by the hand tangling their fingers together as she leads her back into the apartment and to the bed pulling back the sheets. Santana gets into the bed slowly her body feeling the weight of exhaustion settle in she looks almost asleep even before Brittany can get into the bed.

There bodies becoming quickly intertwined both of them holding tightly onto one another the fear not yet having slipped away. Santana is nearly asleep when she brings her lips up to Brittany's ear and places a soft kiss there before settling back down her head grateful to be against the pillow.

"I love you Santana" she says slowly turning around in Santana's arms, she brushes the hair out of her face watching as her eyes force themselves open heavy lids begging to be closed reluctantly life revealing those pretty deep brown eyes. "I love you too Brittany, I always have" her voice is a soft whisper and it's only moments before her eyes close and sleep easily takes her.

…

Brittany leans against the counter staring intensely at the bed where Santana is sleeping, her eyes are red and puffy from crying but the look on her face is more scared than sad. Sugar is wearing a worried expression as she walks back into the apartment giving a cautious look towards the bed.

They stand for a while not saying anything just watching the girl sleep, her breathing is shallow and the only reason she's asleep at all is from the medication they gave her. Her body is curled up in a tight ball and she looks too fragile to be the woman they know.

"Is your head okay? Silver said he found you tied up unconscious in the garage and that your head was bleeding pretty bad…" Sugar speaks cautiously as she stares up at Brittany trying to read a reaction from her.

Brittany's eyes don't move from Santana though she watches with vigilance counting every small uneven breath the woman takes. "It's fine. I heal pretty fast. I can't fix her though" she admits finally her face becomes tight as she struggles to no avail as the tears well in her eyes again.

She pulls her hands into the sleeves of her sweater and wipes her eyes, "I don't know how to make it better or help her I barely know what he did to her" thinking of him causes an instant reaction the mix of disgust and rage flashes across her face. "It's my fault he was able to do this to her…" Brittany whispers her hands curling tightly into fists; "I should have known" she continues and shakes her head bitterly.

Sugar grabs her hand quickly squeezing it tightly in both of hers, "Brittany that guy was a psycho, you heard what the arrow said he was strong too, you had no way of knowing" she argues desperately but she knows Brittany isn't listening. She can see the guilt etched on the older woman's face.

"I made a list of things.." Brittany trails off watching Santana begin to move in the bed she's still asleep but the dreams have come again.

Sugar nods knowingly and walks to the counter taking the pad of paper, "I'll get them" she says quietly and turns to leave but Brittany catches her wrist before she can slip away. The blonde tugs her into a sudden hug and says, "thank you for calling him and everything else."

Sugar freezes nervously against Brittany and as she shuffles away sniffles lightly and clears her throat nodding as she escapes into the hallway before the tears start. She doesn't need the thanks, Brittany and Santana are her family but she doesn't mind hearing it. She wishes she could do more, she feels helpless most of the time when Santana is out patrolling. For now however she has a grocery list and errands to run.

Brittany walks slowly towards the bed and sits down on the edge her fingers moving to gently touch Santana's forehead. They comb through her hair and she waits patiently for Santana's body to calm down. The truth is she can't make the bad dreams go away or magically send all the pain out of the woman's heart. She can heal a lot of things but not those and it makes her feel incredibly small.

She waits until Santana stops moving and her breathing evens out before she crawls into the bed next to her and pulls her tightly against her chest nuzzling down into the mess of black hair.


	5. Chaos Reigns

**Lots of talk in this one sorry it's so delayed it's been difficult trying to get to a computer and such. Lot's of talk in this one to set up the next few chapters hope you guys like it and once again thank you for the support. Actually proofread this one and didn't write it at some ungodly hour of the evening so let's see how this works. Would love to get your guys opinions on Chaos and Silver Arrow they're important going forward and your guys feedback is always helpful. **

…

The sun is sitting high in the sky by the time Santana finally wakes from her slumber. She is sprawled out in the middle of the bed as her body silently protests being the only person occupying the space. She stretches making some soft groaning noises as her spine twists until it carefully cracks and her legs stretch down so her toes try to meet the end of the bed.

She settles after a second or two her eyes still shut as she yawns and mumbles knowingly, "You know it's rude to stare right?" her dark brown eyes flashing open to look at Brittany.

The blonde gives a nervous smile and after a moment of quiet contemplation shrugs her shoulders, "I was just wondering if you were ever going to wake up" she comments smoothly.

She is not wrong to wonder as Santana's behaviour has become more and more erratic the last few days. She has gone from a scared girl to completely obsessed with her patrolling and training to the point of avoiding all other aspects of her life. She trained, patrolled and then slept only eating when it was absolutely necessary and having any line of dialog about something other than those three things has become nearly impossible.

Brittany leans with unease against the large pillar near the bed her arms folded protectively across her chest, "it's good that you're sleeping again I suppose" she articulates softly while crystal blue orbs seem to track the other girl's every moment.

Santana gives an uncomfortable shrug of her shoulders as she postures up onto her elbows her mind already tracking an exit strategy to her current situation. Her lips draw tight for a moment and then with exasperation she simply sighs and mentioning, "I'm going to the gym I'll grab breakfast along the way" adding the last bit in a sore attempt to appease Brittany.

It was nice having Brittany around and it wasn't like the girl has anywhere else to go but she worries about Santana far more than the hero feels tolerable. So many things are unknown and Santana doesn't know how to voice them let alone deal with them so she bottles them quietly inside herself. She lashes out at everything around her and a lack of dialog was the only thing keeping her from snapping at those closest to her.

Carefully peeling the blanket off her body Santana moves to get out of the bed but finds it rather impossible. Brittany has moved from her position against the pillar and planted her hand firmly on Santana's chest. Her long dancer legs swing over Santana's hips her eyes burning with sudden determination and it was a simple word that fell from her lips. "No" she speaks with such sudden conviction it stuns Santana momentarily into silence.

Santana blinks in rapid succession almost feeling like she just might still be sleeping as she stares down the fierce blue eyes that loom above her. Her brow furrows slightly as she processes and the only thing she can think to say is to mirror the word back to Brittany. "No?" the word drips with confusion and an almost mocking sense of amusement as she doesn't quite grasp what Brittany is doing.

"You've been avoiding me so no you're not going," her voice is stern as she stares down at Santana her hand firm against the other girl's chest.

Santana squirms trying to push her arms up to not be at such a disadvantageous position. She quickly finds it a bit more difficult as both of Brittany's hands press against her shoulders forcing her elbows back down onto the mattress. The heat swells beneath her skin as the look on her face changes from playful albeit confused amusement to intense dissatisfaction. "Britt. Off" she commands a sudden edge taking her voice as she narrows her gaze on the woman above her.

Brittany's fingers tense against Santana's skin her touch becoming cold for what heals can also harm and the girl was not as one-sided as Santana first thought. She weakens the muscles and then pushes Santana flat onto her back leaning forward using her leverage to hold her there. "No, every time I try to talk to you, you run away. When was the last time we had a real conversation hmm? Or the last time you kissed me?" she challenges her eyes burning brightly down at Santana.

"I get it, you're scared; I know it because every night when you come home you check that I'm here and you wake up in the middle of the night to make sure I'm still breathing. You can't even get near me without this look in your eye that if you get too close I'm going to break in a million pieces" her voice is softer now her hands no longer pressing Santana against the bed. Her fingers move across the fabric of Santana's shirt sliding over where her heart thumps loudly against her chest, "I know you're hurting but I can't help you if you don't talk to me" she whispers softly.

Santana shifts nervously her head turning to the side as a few tears bitterly slip from her eyes. She sucks the oxygen into her lungs quickly as every muscle begins to scream for her to run. Her legs shift beneath Brittany but to no avail as the girl has her hips easily trapped. She wants away from the conversation and her body begins to panic, digging her elbows into the bed she tries to posture up yet again.

She stops though as her fierce brown eyes stare suddenly into deep blue orbs swimming in tears. Her body relaxes as she leans on her elbows a look of shame sweeping across her face. "I'm sorry" the words come softly, "I didn't want to hurt you Britt, I just don't know how to deal with this. Nothing in that world was real but everything I felt was and I don't want to be the reason you're hurt, I just want you to be safe."

"I get scared too you know, every night you go out I worry you're not going to come back or you'll be hurt beyond what I can heal. You don't let anyone help you so you're all alone out there. I want to be out there with you" Brittany's voice finds strong resolve in the end because she knows what the response will be.

"No, this isn't some fun after school activity we can do together like Glee or Cheerios Britt. The people out there are bad they want to hurt you and if you don't hurt them first you're done for. You've never even hit anyone" Santana warns though her tone isn't harsh her intent is only to make Brittany see reason.

"If I'm with you out there you know I'm safe because you can see me and I know you're safe too. I can fight; just because I won't throw a punch at you doesn't mean I'm defenceless. I train and I'm good at it, my powers are getting stronger…just think about it" she relents a little bit knowing enough not to push too hard.

Santana's reaction isn't immediate her eyes search into Brittany's for a while and she wants to trust her but it's difficult. Out in the middle of the danger she's alone because she doesn't trust anyone else in those situations. She knows Brittany would always have her back and would do anything to protect her and that's what scares her about the proposal. Her gaze lowers softly for a second before she nods slowly, "I'll think about it" she says unable to disguise the nervous quality to her words.

…

A shrill scream pierces the air as Santana's boot comes down hard dislocating the thug's shoulder the bone popping out of the socket with a sickening noise. She releases his wrist and spins around her foot shooting up under the jaw of one of the man's companions. He howls loudly and stumbles backwards trying desperately to regain his footing. It doesn't happen as Santana takes a running step and leaps into the air her knee landing in the center of his chest. He crashes backwards his skull bouncing off the hard concrete as he lands.

She is relentless and reaches down grabbing the man by his hair, lifting his head up only to smash it back down into the concrete. His head falls to the side as consciousness leaves his worried body. Since her incident with Mark her level of violence and ultimately brutality has increased ten fold.

These are low level thugs she normally would have left to the police but lately it's the fights she craves and they are in no short supply of that. Weeks ago she would have tapped them with a bit of energy or the stun rod but this week she's beating them savagely fully knowing they don't stand a chance.

She hears another thundering towards her and grins wickedly up until the point where a black whip comes out of nowhere and snaps around his throat. His eyes go wide and the face is priceless but does little to salvage her smile as she watches a figure appear from the shadows.

The woman who steps from the shadows appears utterly disinterested in the man she is slowly strangling with the whip. She walks towards him reeling in the length as he struggles to loosen it. She's dressed in dark red and is staring at Santana through a black minimalist mask with sharp red eyes.

"Run and I won't kill you," she whispers to the man snapping the whip away from his neck and he takes her advice willingly scrambling away from the scene. The mysterious woman sizes Santana up with a lingering gaze and then grins, "you must be the Veiled Fairy" she asks still intent on encroaching into Santana's personal space.

"I am and I don't remember asking for your help so run along," Santana snaps her fingers curling into tight fists.

"Charming, I'm Chaos and you are playing a very dangerous game. You aren't protecting a city anymore dear you're hunting. Nothing wrong with that of course, if you don't put these fools out of there misery they will always come back for seconds," she explains in a casual tone seemingly oblivious or uninterested by Santana's demeanour.

"You don't have to play by their rules and if you knew the whole truth you wouldn't, they keep secrets to keep you complacent. When you're tired of them lying to you look for me and I'll find you and show you the way…" her voice trails as those glowing red eyes narrow on something behind Santana.

The Veiled Fairy stares stoically at the woman listening to both her and Sugar's rapid chatter in her ear. The hyper active child is like bringing someone to a movie who intends to talk through the entire thing, highly irritating. She watches the woman leave as secretively as she came before Santana even thinks about turning around to what caught Chaos' attention.

"Lovely evening isn't it?" The Silver Arrow's voice drips with annoyance but it is not her he's staring at but rather the spot where the woman dressed all in red had been standing.

"I've had my quota of advice for the evening" Santana snaps airily before brushing past him as she heads for the shadows herself. She doesn't get more than a step before he grabs tightly around her bicep causing her jaw to clench and her glare to coldly settle in on him, "if you want to keep that hand you'll let go" the threat doesn't sound empty.

"The council is concerned with your behaviour as of late, you leave more criminals in hospital than you do prison. Those are just the lowly thugs, every creature with any measurable power you come across you have nearly disabled or killed…it is not the way and it is not acceptable" his tone is cold and he has all the effectiveness of a scolding parent, that is to say none at all, on Santana.

She scoffs shaking her head and pulls her arm cleanly out of his grasp without any hesitation, "if given the chance they'd do it to me I don't see the problem with returning the intent" she explains coolly distancing herself from him though making no intention of leaving

"You are walking a dark road, you're slipping and if you don't stop you'll end up like your new friend. Ask her what falling from the council's favour feels like because it wasn't long ago she was just like you walking that dark path all alone" he lowers his voice barely above a whisper as he speaks his eyes filled with more worry than disdain now.

Santana shrinks away from his words but it is more the look in his eye that causes her to shrink away from him towards the shadows and the safety of being hidden.

"You replaced her, we told you she was dead and she might as well be to the council. She went rogue and now they hunt her like a dog in the street. She is no friend of yours. Your future could very well mirror hers if you are not careful Fairy. I've spoken to Brittany, perhaps her offer is not so ill thought if it keeps you from this fate" He stares down at her having once again invaded her space.

"If she's enemy number one to the council shouldn't you be after her by now instead of wasting my time?" She questions pulling her defensive shields up high to her chin as he broke a cardinal sin dragging Brittany into the conversation.

"She is my niece and I do not want her blood on my hands," the words hang heavy in the air as he walks past Santana and grapples up into the roof tops and out of sight leaving Santana frozen for a second.

…

Santana sits high above the rest of the city leaning back against the "M" of 'Motta Towers'. The letters are massive pieces of metal sitting on top of the building and it is a favourite place of hers to come and sit. It's the quiet she chases tonight, too much has been said and she questions what to believe.

Chaos feels like the devil on her shoulder whispering what she wants to hear but the Arrow doesn't seem to want to tell her the whole truth either. He admits to his lies like he admits to a favourite flavour of ice cream. It isn't the first time he has come unexpectedly truthful about his past lies.

She pulls the gauntlets from her hand tossing them across the roof top like a child tossing a toy from the crib. Her knees are bent drawn up near her chest and she brings her forearms to rest against them while one hand holds a bottle of whiskey loose around the neck.

The bottle is half gone and she brings it back to her lips to help the cause taking a long drink careless in her behaviour. The door from the stairs swings carefully open but she doesn't move in fact she barely even reacts. Her head lolls to one side eyes scanning legs that seem to go on forever.

Her tongue slicks subconsciously across her lower lip as the long legs take smooth confident strides towards her. Her eyes drift slowly over the black shorts to where razor sharp hip bones escape the fabric. She becomes captivated watching the dangerous hips sway innocently as she figure approaches.

Santana's breath hitches in her throat as she stares through thick lashes at Brittany as she slowly loweres herself to the ground between Santana's legs taking the bottle away. She crawles innocently forward pressing her hand on the cool metal beside Santana's head leaning in to let her lips hover inches from the hero's ear.

"Because this is so much better than coming home to bed…" she teases lightly kissing slowly down Santana's neck until she feels the girl shudder and hears the small moan tumble effortlessly from her mouth.

"I just needed some time to think," the words sound utterly foolish coming from her mouth present circumstances considered. Her hand lifts brushing across Brittany's exposed arm her skin cold from the frigid night air.

"About…what happened?" Brittany asks hesitating for a moment her lips poised hovering lightly above Santana's skin.

"No, for the first time in weeks no…about what you asked me this morning" Santana speaks slowly finding it difficult to focus on what is being said as Brittany hovers inches above her. She becomes painfully aware that no parts of their bodies are touching as the blonde hesitates again this time dissecting Santana's reaction.

Brittany smiles against Santana's neck before leaving an impassioned kiss against her throat. "Is that so?" She mumbles the pride practically overwhelming the curious nature of the question.

Santana's laugh is effortless and she bites it back biting down on her lower lip forgetting the serious nature of the discussion. Being around Brittany makes it easy for her to forget the danger sometimes, when she's this close and all Santana can smell is her and every piece of her wants to touch and be touched the real world gets the volume turned down.

She doesn't want to admit it but she needs Brittany, she needs someone there to keep her from losing control. Her temper has always been quick but these days she seeks to prove something: that she's god damn invincible and it's the rest of the world that needs to be afraid. She knows she won't act this way under Brittany's watchful gaze, she doesn't want Brittany to know about the darkness that swells in her chest.

"It is, I want to see this training you've been doing first but I want you out there with me," she speaks slowly her head turned to the side exposing her neck as Brittany effortlessly trails down her neck in a rhythm of biting and kissing.

Brittany's response is less verbal and instead she is drawing her hand between the two of them, finding the zipper to Santana's costume unlocking and dragging it down. Her fingers dance gliding down the freshly exposed skin feeling the goose bumps form as the cold air swarms the warm skin.

Santana's shoulders are pressing firmly back against the metal as her chest arches out against the touch her skin sensitive to the touch and the cold. "Britt," she finally chokes out having to clear her throat to make sure she can actually speak, "we should go in" her brain is screaming at her to be quiet but even it knows she shouldn't be undressing in this weather and Brittany isn't wearing much either.

"Why?" Brittany giggles against her neck; "are you getting cold?" she is smiling brightly into Santana's shoulder as the other girl struggles to conceal what she is feeling. She relents finally pulling away leaving Santana breathless. Britt looks all too pleased with herself as she stands above her watching as she tries to pull herself together.

Santana is quick to her feet with some motivation now swimming in her mind she lingers in the cold long enough to cast a sweeping gaze over Brittany. She closes the distance capturing the pretty girl in a hard kiss backing her towards the door.


	6. Street Justice

**Finally! Lord this has taken forever the holidays were killing me. This one is a bit longer than the others but I had a lot that I wanted to cover. Sincerely thank you for all the support once again and honest opinions. A small favour to ask though if someone could send me some more info on Beta readers it would be appreciated. It was pointed out I could benefit from one so I will certainly look into it I'm just not sure where to start. **

…

It's the middle of the afternoon and probably the first time in a long while that the gym has been so full of life. The room feels like the furnace has been turned on in the middle of summer and the sun shining in through the floor to ceiling windows isn't helping. The gym is one of two in Motta towers and is on one of four floors not accessible to the general inhabitants of the building.

Sugar is sitting off to the side with the Silver Arrow their game of chess sitting abandoned as they exchange nervous glances as the scene unfolds. Hours ago Santana and Brittany walked out of the elevator giggling with their pinkies locked together and now they seemed more likely to scream at one another than laugh.

The tension raises thick in the air with the only sounds grunts of effort from Brittany and the rhythmic sound of fists and feet on a punching bag. After a while her hits become slow and soft as the energy withers from her already exhausted body. She sags heavily into the punching bag her wrapped hands shaking as she grabs onto the chains that connect it to the mounting bracket. Her chest heaves in and out as her lungs and muscles scream for oxygen and rest.

There is no rest coming however as Santana's eyes dart suddenly up from where she had been staring holes into the punching bag. "Don't stop. Start again, keep your guard up this time you're leaving yourself open for attack" She chastises firmly. She's leaning into the punching bag holding it steady with all the enthusiasm of a depressed child. She studies her nails or stares emotionless at the bag and not a word of encouragement has left her lips since they began.

Brittany forces a breath of air from her nostrils and pushes back from the punching bag her legs feeling like jelly beneath her. The sweat is pouring off of her now and soaking what little clothing she is still wearing. The loose shorts are sticking uncomfortably to her skin and the sports bra feels irritatingly wet but it's hard to think of those things while her muscles scream at her to stop. The problem is that she doesn't know how to stop anymore, something has switched on inside of her and its driving her forward.

There's a rush of adrenaline or maybe just rage that pumps through her veins and feeds her muscles enough misinformation that they allow her to continue. Her movements are precise and her strikes tight and on target but there is no sly smile of confidence on her face like there was when she first began. Now she wears a look of sheer determination and focus as she follows through with each strike and calculates the next combination before she completes it.

Her muscles can only be fooled for so long and she has to stop her last punch lands weakly against the bag. She coughs and sputters stepping backwards as her body doubles over. Her hands clasped tightly to her knees she heaves in the oxygen as fast as her lungs will take it. She's too tired to heal herself and right now she isn't even entirely sure she can stand up let alone throw another punch.

Santana's fingers drum anxiously against the punching bag as she watches Brittany struggle to stay on her feet. Her instincts are in command and they want her moving forward to catch the girl in case she falls. Her heart wants her to stop pushing Brittany to the edge but she knows better than to listen to them.

Brittany's head hangs the sweat dripping off her brow towards the ground as the staggered breaths slowly filter through her lungs. Her eyes shut for a moment revelling in the quiet of the room, it feels like everyone is holding their breath waiting for her to succeed or fail. Her body wants her to find the soft ground and cease all attempts at continuing but the rest of her doesn't want to stop until Santana says so.

…

"_Is that her?" Brittany asks staring at a photograph on the wall in the dimly lit corridor. The picture is of three men and a young girl all dressed in hero costumes and all smiling brightly at the camera. _

_Santana leans over her shoulder to get a closer look at the girl and cracks a smile, "yeah, different costume and less cheerful but that's definitely Chaos" she answers decidedly. She extends her hand to the small plaque under the photograph tapping the name lightly. "Says here she used to be Maxine Bryce 'The Angel'…I guess a lot has changed since this was taken" she mentions with a distinct sadness to her voice. _

_The wide Oak doors swing open abruptly ending the conversation and the Silver Arrow motions for them to enter. Brittany turns and gives a nervous sideways glance to Santana before taking a few hesitant steps towards the room. Santana is quick to reach down and slide her hand into Brittany's tangling their fingers tightly together. With renewed purpose Brittany strides confidently beside Santana into the council's chambers. _

_Santana explained the politics of the League of Heroes to Brittany though it all still feels overwhelming. She explained that an individual hero or sometimes a group of heroes in charge of a city. That a more experienced hero like the Silver Arrow is in charge of a district of cities and is meant to act as a sort of handler or supervisor of all the heroes in that area. A council oversee a group of handlers and they report back to the Order who is in charge of everyone. All Brittany knows is she needs the council to O.K her going on patrols with Santana. _

_The room is massive and a group of four men and two women sit at a long table at one end of the room. The pair follows the Silver arrow to the head of the room and stand before the council neither of them entirely sure what they are supposed to say. _

_An older looking man stands from his chair and stares down at them with an expression of contempt. "Miss Pierce, I want you to be aware that we do not normally consider your kind to be what we call Class A agents. Your abilities thus far have proven to be defensive and thus suited for either field teams or post-mission work. Mr. Bryce however assures me that you have been developing positive offensive techniques. Also, due to some extenuating circumstances we have decided to allow you to become an agent of the League" he drones on oblivious to the look of confusion swept across Brittany's face. She's never been the best at following long winded speeches and admittedly stopped paying attention halfway through. _

_She turns her head towards Santana the look of confusion still swept across her delicate features, "that's a good thing right?" she asks with a hopeful smile. Santana stifles a laugh and nods her head at the girl before giving her a quick wink. _

"_However, I do not agree with your training being attended to by Miss Lopez. Frankly she can barely control herself let alone a protégé and as such I would recommend Miss Pierce be put under the tutelage of a more experienced member. If I am not mistaken Davis Kasich is without student at the moment," His words trail off as the other members exchange subtle sideways glances at the name. _

_Santana is stepping forward before anyone can say anything and she waves her arm in a precise motion dismissing the notion entirely. "No, absolutely not you are not sending her off with stranger and you are an idiot if you think I would let a damn thing happen to her" Santana rallies the anger obvious in her voice as it shakes. Brittany has said nothing her eyes are locked on the enraged Latina and her hand is fearfully holding tightly onto Santana's. _

_The Silver Arrow steps in laying his hand peacefully on Santana's shoulder giving her a reassuring look. He turns towards the council and raises his hands calmly to them to try and prevent the words that readily form on their lips. "Please, I do not agree with her words but I cannot send Miss Pierce away certainly not with Kasich's history. I volunteer myself, I will train her myself as well as perform my other duties it would be my pleasure, and I implore you to consider this, please." He speaks quickly and positions himself in front of the girls providing a barrier between them and the council. _

_One of the women on the council stands and stares at the older gentleman who has been addressing them, "I believe Daniel has a point Vincent, we should not be sending any recruits certainly not female recruits to Kasich until the investigation is clear. Daniel Bryce may have trained some rather rebellious agents in the past but I see no reason why he would not be able to guide Miss Pierce through training" she speaks kindly but firmly her eyes never wavering from the older man. _

_The man stands for a moment his eyes seeming to stare right through the barrier known as Daniel Bryce at Santana. The corners of his mouth twitch downward in disgust but he finally sighs and shakes his head. "As you wish, by the order of the council I, Vincent Constantine do swear in Brittany Susan Pierce to the League of Heroes. She is your responsibility now Bryce, do not disappoint us" the words hang heavy in the air as the council slowly exits the room one by one. _

_The three of them stand motionless in the room staring where the council had been sitting. There are more questions than answers swimming between the two girls as they exchange looks of mixed emotions. _

_Santana is the first to break the silence her question is directed at the Silver Arrow, "Daniel, are you going to explain what the hell that was about? Who is this Kasich guy?" She questions pointedly her gaze travelling to where the council exited. _

"_He is the Black Lance; he was part of Team Black out of Seattle until he was kicked out about six years ago. He has never had a good reputation with women, please leave it at that. The point is she is not going there," he explains slowly giving Santana a warning look. _

_She looks down to where her hand is meshed together with Brittany's and she nods slowly giving him this small grace, "Thank you" she says finally and gives Brittany's hand a tight squeeze. _

"_Don't thank me yet," he smiles in an almost childish way, more specifically the way they do when they're about to get in trouble. "I don't intend to physically train Brittany; I don't have the time to be honest. You will train her and I trained you so in a way I haven't completely lied to the council. I will supervise what I can and offer guidance" He explains as the Cheshire grin spreads across his cheeks. _

"_Private training sessions…" Brittany muses her eyes travelling crisply down Santana's body. It's entirely playful and she cannot help but fall into laughter an act which pulls a mirrored response from Santana. _

_The three of them are walking from the room chattering like old friends when Daniel stops suddenly. The smile fades from his lips as he stops at the picture Brittany and Santana had been hovering around earlier. He stares blankly at it for a moment before turning his attention to where the two girls now stand waiting for him. They are young like she was and it reminds him how easy it is to get lost. _

_Santana pulls away from Brittany motioning for her to wait as she walks towards where Daniels stands almost froze, "You okay Silver?" she asks gently touching his shoulder. _

_He stares down at her for a second and then looks past her to Brittany, "Sometimes in an effort to protect the ones we love we end up hurting them. We think that out there it doesn't matter if they're ready or not because we can protect them. No matter what we would die before letting anything happen to them. She needs to know how to protect herself, she has to be ready Santana" he warns looking down at her once again. _

…

Before Brittany can push forward again Santana is there catching her biceps in a firm grip. The blonde struggles for a moment against the hold her shoulders jutting forward but the effort is futile. Santana's grip softens against the trembling muscles, "Britt, stop" she says gently.

With the adrenaline bleeding out of her now Brittany's legs shake and give way her body dropping to the ground. Santana leaves her side for a second but returns a moment later and settles down next to her sliding a bottle of water into her hands.

Brittany sits in silence for a while cradling the cold bottle of water against her chest when she isn't taking slow steady sips from it. She is looking anywhere but the space that Santana occupies next to her on the floor. "I'm not as weak as everyone thinks I am," Brittany says finally breaking the silence that had become near deafening.

Santana flinches to the words and takes a slow bite at her own lower lip holding the words back carefully turning them over before she chooses to speak. She is rarely so tactful especially when it comes to Brittany. Almost everything she says to her is off the cuff and straight from her heart but she needs to be careful. She lifts a hand to gently stroke down the side of Brittany's face feeling the heat radiating off of her skin.

"You're amazing Brittany and I never doubted that. I will always believe in you. I just needed to make sure you could keep fighting when your body doesn't want to go anymore. I love you B and I don't want anything to happen to you is all," She says finally bringing her dark eyes up to meet Brittany's.

She takes a moment to digest Santana's words before raising tired arms to pull Santana into a quick embrace before getting her legs under her and tackling her to the ground. They lay tangled on the floor for a moment laughing, Brittany has tears in her eyes because it's one of those moments when it hurts to laugh.

"Next time don't be such a jerk about it," She warns kissing Santana quickly on the end of her nose before she can react. Santana is still full of sporadic laughter and can only nod in response to the statement. "And you're going to piggyback me upstairs it will be your punishment," Brittany adds slowly rolling off Santana to lay flat on the ground once more needing time to catch her breath.

Bryce stands and stretches cracking his back while staring down at the pair, "I feel like I'm god damn babysitting. I'm not even forty yet and you two make me feel old" he chastises them.

…

The sound of knuckles banging loudly on the door is enough to rouse the two women from a deep sleep. Their bodies are tangled together in a heap of arms and legs combined with blankets and sheets. They seem to groan and detest the sound in unison and it only encourages them to pull their heads under the blankets.

Sugar is nothing if not persistent however and flings the door open and comes prancing into the apartment at an alarming rate. Daniel Bryce is close on her heels dressed in his civilian clothes still and wearing a look of deep concern.

Santana is the first to poke her head out from under the blankets and she glares at the pair of them muttering something profane in Spanish under her breath. Brittany is giggling under the blankets still in that half dream haze where few things don't make her smile and giggle. Untangling her hand from under Brittany's body she taps the sleep-drunk girl's nose. A smile tugs effortlessly at the corners of her mouth as she uncovers Brittany from the blankets as well.

Sugar promptly drops the folder she is carrying on the countertop and covers her eyes as the two scantily clad women crawl out from bed. They're not naked but somehow bra and panties do little to convince Sugar that this is something she needs to see. Daniel Bryce has chosen a far more subtle tactic in avoiding looking at the women and instead stares with great interest at the ceiling.

The women dress in whatever they can find and wander into the kitchen area where their new 'guests' have gathered. Santana folds her arms coolly across her chest while Brittany gently pulls Sugar's hands away from her face and pats her head sympathetically.

"Ass kicking time isn't for another two hours and Britt-Britt is supposed to be resting, what the hell Silver," Santana demands impatiently falling quickly into a yawn as she takes to glaring at them. The bed was warm and she was comfortable and neither of these facts meant she was even close to ready to be getting out of bed.

It's Sugar who jumps into the explanation first flipping the folder open and taking out a thin scrap book with Santana's face on it. Her hands seem to tremble inexplicably as she hands it to Santana with the prompt, "this came to your P.O box about six months ago with this creepy love letter, I threw the letter out" she admits the last part almost guiltily but Santana doesn't seem fazed.

"So it's a book of all of my magazine articles and photos what's the big deal?" She questions flipping through the book not seeing anything worth ruining her nap over. She gets to the end and snaps it closed turning it over and then tossing it onto the counter.

Brittany slides onto a stool at the counter and begins flipping through the book still feeling sore all over. Her body is periodically healing itself and the effort in doing so has most of her attention but she's still keeping an eye on Santana's reactions to things. Most of her is hoping this is Sugar overreacting to something but the presence of the Silver Arrow has her worried.

"The letter was creepy!" Sugar counters but furiously shakes her head and grabs from the folder again shoving another scrapbook into Santana's hands. "Not the point" she recovers shaking her head again, "it was sent to your mailbox downstairs and arrived this morning" she explains. Her eyes grow dark as she stares at the blank cover knowing very well what is inside.

Santana quirks a questioning brow as she opens it and her entire stance suddenly shifts. Her entire body is stiff as she stares at the first few photos on the plain black page; the new scrapbook is a far cry from the colourful enthusiastically decorated one she was first given.

The photos are of her but they are candid shots of her out for an afternoon run and then her flopped down on the grass in front of the Motta Towers. Her fingers turn the pages looking at all of them her eyes becoming wide with distinct horror. The pictures are all of her out in the city at first and she's usually alone and completely unaware.

Further into the book there are scattered shots of her standing in the window of her apartment. It is the next few pages that make the blood run cold inside her veins because the pictures include Brittany. The spaces where Brittany's face should be have been scratched out but Santana knows it's her.

Brittany has returned to her side and is wrapping her arms around Santana's one arm her hands folding tightly around her bicep. Santana glances sideways at her before snapping the book closed and throwing it onto the counter. "Anything else?" she asks darkly watching as Sugar squirms under her gaze.

"This letter," the timid girl mumbles nervously handing the note over to Santana. She takes it from Sugar and reads it quickly the look of disturbed contempt growing as her eyes travel down the page. It's angry, it sounds like the words of a betrayed lover upset that she's with someone else. Above all else the words are threatening and Santana doesn't finish reading it before crumpling it tightly in her fist throwing it uselessly into the sink.

Her temper boils quickly and the words are barely forced out through clenched teeth, "who the fuck" she snarls bearing down on Sugar. Brittany holds her arm still with one hand while the other slides across her back trying to ground her from the situation.

Sugar takes a step back grabbing the last piece of paper from the folder she brought up her eyes read it quickly as her brain refuses to remember the information on its own. "After the psycho hacked into our system I increased security and I went back and was able to find his face on some of the new cameras. I ran it through the database but he doesn't have a record but I went through some of the older fan mail and I found him…" she rambles very aware of the look Santana is currently shooting her way.

"His name is Justin Kaplan, he works night security in the warehouse district, and he's thirty two and lives in apartment 506 at 1086 North Street" She rattles off the information and then falls silent looking at the floor.

"Does he know who Santana is?" Brittany inquires suddenly her gaze shooting between Bryce and Santana both of whom seem to perk up at the question.

"No," Sugar shakes her head, "Since the upgrade Santana normally leaves from the roof and when returning the Queen of darkness pulls the shadows for a veil from about one hundred feet away from the building. Even if he was looking for her he wouldn't be able to get a clear shot even with the best camera and he makes no mention of it" she reassures firmly nodding to the Silver Arrow.

"We could just turn this information over the police" Bryce finally speaks up but even he knows this isn't an option to Santana. The look etched across her features says it all; she will deal with this on her own. "Take Brittany, scare him do not cross the line" he warns pulling his shoulders squarely up to tower over the pair of them.

Santana nods reluctantly, "I can't promise he won't need a hospital but he'll be alive" she smiles confidently back at the Silver Arrow as he stalks from the room muttering to himself.

The calm she's let wash over herself is a façade, in truth she feels more foolish than anything else having let someone get so close to her without her noticing. Sugar slinks away satisfied that the situation will be handled but Brittany is not so easy to fool. She stares with deep worry as Santana disconnects from her and walks calmly across the room.

Santana is only ever this calm when something is deeply wrong, she is a woman of emotions and she wears most of them on her sleeve. When she is happy she smiles big, when she's angry everyone in the room knows it and often she is moved to tears. But this is different she is holding everything so tight to her chest she can't feel anything at all.

Brittany gathers the evidence off of the counter and walks around into the kitchen fishing a barbecue lighter from the drawer. Long legs carry her with ease to the fireplace where she throws the scrapbooks and she crouches down lighting them ablaze. She can feel Santana's eyes on the back of her neck staring at her from across the room where she stands fiddling with her suit's GPS.

Santana does her best to dance around Brittany the rest of the early evening feigning an interest in planning and moves quickly between tasks alternating in preparation and cursing Sugar through the radios. Brittany is the quiet center of the room and she's ready in her brand new electric blue costume long before Santana is even out of her comfy napping clothes.

Any attempt at conversation is shut down or diverted away from what they should be talking about. Brittany knows what's wrong; this is the second person to figure out what Santana values and to seek to use it against her. Santana wouldn't be as perturbed if the pervert had only taken pictures of her in the park. She might have knocked him one square in the jaw but he wouldn't have gotten so deep under her skin had he not involved Brittany.

…

They abandon typical protocol for the evening and head straight from the tower to the stalker's apartment. Santana is amazed at Brittany's ability to keep up despite not being fully recovered from training. They perch on the building sitting across from Justin's apartment quietly staring down at the curtained window.

"Can you see in at all?" Santana asks as she pulls a heavy veil of darkness around them to conceal their position. "We know he's there, Sugar made sure he wasn't working tonight, I just don't want to go in blind if I don't have to" she explains.

Brittany shifts and uncomfortably leans forward trying to focus but quickly chimes in, "It's a new power San, I can't promise I will be accurate…" She warns looking now at a suddenly smiling Santana.

"It's fine, he's small time B, just give it your best shot" she reassures gently placing her hand over top of Brittany's giving it a quick squeeze.

The blonde nods firmly feeling a surge of confidence and concentrates her gaze on the building. It's slow at first but she's able to break through the bricks and see inside it's hazy and only lasts a few seconds but it's enough. She blinks rapidly rubbing her eyes through the simple black mask covering her eyes.

"Two bedroom apartment, that window opens into the living room there's a lot of furniture in the room. A desk is right under the window so watch how you enter, he's in the bedroom closest to the kitchen" Brittany rambles off all the facts she can remember and then slumps down against the roof.

Santana nods and gently leans forward on the building's ledge, "That's good Britt honest, give me five minutes then come in" she can already hear the hesitation in Brittany's breathing, "B, I've got this okay? I promised Silver I wouldn't kill him and I won't" she says firmly.

Brittany is reluctant to nod in agreement it's the lack of emotion that has her watching with a careful eye as Santana stands on the ledge of the building. She hates what she is about to do next it makes her stomach to flip-flops every time.

Santana stares down at the window and rolls her head from side to side doing her best to keep the emotions tucked in the pit of her stomach. Without warning she lets her body fall from the taller building her arms stretching out. She levels out and watches the approaching window and inhales deeply before sending a pulse of energy hard enough to shatter the glass.

She sails cleanly through the window landing with a graceful roll as she finds the ground only narrowly clearing the desk. She is quick to conceal her presence pulling the darkness in a heavy veil around her as she listens to frightened footsteps scramble across the floor towards where she rests.

The man appears in the doorway holding a wooden baseball bat cradled against his chest and he looks more coward than slugger. He is barely taller than Santana herself and likely weighs about the same. His voice shakes terribly as he calls into the inexplicable darkness, "Who is there, I know you're there!"

She kicks off the ground sending her body crashing into his forcing him back into the bedroom. Her hands cover the baseball bat lifting it off his chest only to force it abruptly down pulling a painful groan to cough from his cracked lips.

Santana lifts him off of the ground with her the baseball bat falling down at their feet where it is quickly kicked away. She holds him against the wall with her arm pressed across his shoulders keeping him steady.

"I am a close and personal friend of Santana Lopez, you can call me Snixx" She muses from behind clenched teeth. The darkness has swallowed her brown eyes turning them black and there is no kindness behind the mask now.

"We're going to talk, or I am going to talk actually you're going to nod along because if you say a damn word to me I'll take your little friends," she explains pressing her knee between his legs hard enough to make her point. He nods quickly his eyes wide and frantically darting around the room looking for something, anything really to save him.

She brings her elbow up from where it presses in his shoulder to come across his jaw. His knees try to buckle beneath him but her arm returns to its position and she holds him up. "You're going to leave her alone," she says watching his head shake wildly from side to side in disagreement.

"You must not have understood. That was not a question it was an order but maybe this will make things more clear" She leans in close to his ear and inhales before unleashing a sharp shriek into his ear. The result is a blood curdling howl to fall from his lips and a smile to form on hers.

Santana lets his body crumble to the floor as he lurches forward trying desperately to hold onto the ear he will likely never hear out of again. He is holding himself off the floor with one arm while the other tries to stop the pain radiating out of his other ear.

She steps around him and brings the sharp heel of her boot down onto the back of his hand crushing it against the hardwood floor. He howls loudly as the bones crunch, his eyes grow wide as she digs the heel in a bit harder before stepping away. He hasn't a second to tend to the fresh wound before her foot swings this time bringing the toe of her boot into his ribcage.

He rolls onto his side curling his body into the fetal position with his hand tucked tightly against his chest. His eyes are wide as he watches the shadowed figure descend upon him still unable to see her clearly. She pushes his head down against the floor his throbbing ear painfully pressed to the ground he lets out a pitiful whimper in spite of himself.

"I hope I have your attention now," Santana hesitates seeing Brittany enter the room from the corner of her eye. The pretty blonde surveys the destruction Santana has caused but makes no movements to interfere. "You will never contact her again, you will never go near her, and you will never go near her friends or her girlfriend. If you break any of these rules I will come back and you will suffer a terrible accident. I don't want to confuse you so let me rephrase that, I will kill you with my bare hands and you will suffer. Nod if you understand," she spits through clenched teeth.

His head nods weakly as Brittany approaches from behind and pulls Santana easily to her feet giving her a long and carful once over. They are gone as quickly as they came leaving him broken on the floor cradling his wounds like a scared child.

**...**

It's not until they're standing on top of a nearby building that Santana finally lets the veil fall away from them. Brittany lands moments after she does and shuffles her feet nervously in the silence for a while. "I didn't want to stop you," she admits finally, "I didn't think you'd kill him but I wanted bad things to happen to him" she clarifies almost scared of her own voice now.

Santana is there immediately tucking her hands under Brittany's chin, "that doesn't make you a bad person Britt, we both know if I went too far you would have stepped in" Santana reassures her trying to meet her gaze.

"You really think so?" Brittany asks almost sounding hopeful as she finally meets Santana's gaze. Santana nods easily swooping in to place a soft kiss against Brittany's cheek right below her mask.

Santana curls suddenly away however her eyes turning skyward as a figure descends from the darkness landing with a heavy thud. It's Chaos but this time she has two large wings sticking from her back. They shudder in the cold wind as she folds them back behind her.

"Suddenly the old Alias makes sense," Santana remarks calmly letting her eyes trail along the edges of the white wings. Brittany's head turns to one side looking at them as well and comments, "they're beautiful" her eyes are wide and bright with wonder.

Chaos casts a mournful look over her own shoulder watching the feathers move in the soft breeze. "I cut them off all the time but they keep growing back, escaping the past is never as easy as it seems" she comments sadly. "I was surprised to see him still alive," she changes the subject easily nodding her head towards the general direction of Justin's apartment.

"He is a pervert, sorry if don't find that a crime punishable by death," Santana says smoothly her gaze growing dark, "is he even still alive?" she questions remembering all she's learned about this woman.

"Is that what they told you about me? That I am some ruthless killer who slaughters every pickpocket and drug user?" Chaos snarks shaking her head in obvious disgust. "No it's the meta humans who prey on the innocent I kill. It's the rapists and the murderers who don't escape my grasp. The league thinks they can lock people away and they will learn their lesson. I teach the petty criminals harsh lessons but they learn to fear doing wrong and maybe that pervert will never bother you again but the next girl might not be so lucky" She challenges stepping forward her eyes burning passionately as she speaks. "He is alive, his fate is tied to you, not me" she explains seeming to calm down once again.

"He is not why I am here," she continues and slides a satchel from her shoulder and tosses it to Santana. "I wanted to let you know your dear friend Arachne has escaped transport enroute to a meta facility in Dallas," She explains watching intently for Santana's reaction.

It's Brittany who reacts however her brow furrows in agitation, "There are at least six meta human facilities between here and Dallas" she exclaims her attention turning to Santana who seems equally confused by the information.

"It was your new friend Mr. Constantine's 'suggestion'; he claimed there was a specialist there who could curb her urges," Chaos continues to explain motioning to the bag now firmly in Brittany's hands. "Files are all in there, but a little bird told me something else I thought you might find interesting" She mentions glancing warily over her shoulder before moving closer.

Santana is alert and eyes her warily as she approaches but eases slightly as Chaos shows her, her open palms letting her know she has no weapons ready. Brittany steps forward as well now holding the satchel against her chest.

"Davis Kasich, The Black Lance, was not just kicked out of Team Black, he was outcast and nearly killed by the other members. They caught him a few moments away from raping one of the female members. He did however rape and abuse Spitfire during her 'training' she was taken from his guardianship when she finally issued a formal complaint," She says mirroring the look of disgust that finds its way to both Brittany and Santana's faces.

"He is Constantine's nephew and has never been formally charged for anything he's ever done. The files are in there as well, I just thought you should be aware of the kind of people who are handling you," She says finally with a shrug of her shoulders. She pauses glancing over her shoulder into the darkness, "I've overstayed my welcome" she mumbles. Without warning her wings spread wide and in seconds she's gone into the darkness.

…

It's at Brittany's suggestion that they find themselves quietly sneaking into Daniel Bryce's apartment. He hears them before they've gotten themselves through the window and is jogging quickly into the room shutting a number of doors behind himself as he approaches.

"I've asked you call first Miss Lopez," he mentions before heaving himself into a heavy chair lacking his usual enthusiasm for lecturing. He seems more tired than he usually does and on edge.

"Maxine gave these to me are they true?" Santana asks bluntly throwing a set of file folders onto the coffee table in front of him. He stares at her for a long moment before he begins flipping through the papers.

Brittany seems suddenly distracted as she pulls herself from Santana's side her gaze focused on the closed doors. Santana watches her for a moment before taking the chair opposite of Daniel as he leafs through the pages his face growing grim as he reads.

"Maxie always was a good detective but she never did know when not to tell the truth" He comments mildly closing the folders. "Yes it's true. But do not let her spin this into some conspiracy theory…" he warns giving Santana a grave look.

"Yes this stupid prick tries to send Britt to a rapist and then sends a psycho, who for probably good reasons wants me dead, on a nice long road trip where she magically escapes into the wild. How could I ever think this guy is out to get me!" She shouts standing up again her arms waving wildly around in violent gestures as she argues.

"Yes, Vincent is a fool but he is not a monster out to get you Santana! Even suggesting these things are enough to get you arrested" He hollers back at her glaring pointedly across the table.

Santana's mouth opens to yell back but she's stopped by the sudden cries from the other room. All three adults turn towards the door where Brittany has been staring and listen to the sound of a child crying. They all seem to freeze at the sound of a small thump and then tiny feet padding across the floor towards the room.

Daniel finally catches up to his thoughts and gets to his feet quickly but is waved off by Brittany. She opens the door and crouches down finding herself face to face with a small girl. She looks no more than two years old with blonde ringlets falling around a doll like face.

Brittany has already removed her mask and the child finds herself staring into those blue eyes that seem to easily win people over. The look of confusion turns into a bright smile as the tears seem to stop. Brittany extends a hand gently touching the stuffed bunny in the girl's hand, "what's his name?" she asks gently. The girl cuddles the bunny close to her chest and answers shyly, "Maxie…superhero!" She rallies enthusiasm in the end holding the bunny excitedly out to Brittany.

"Harley, it's bedtime come on I'll take you back" Daniel stands finally approaching the young girl but she instantly finds the tears and pouts again, "Story!" she shouts clearly dissatisfied with the idea of sleeping.

"I can read to her while you two…talk" Brittany says giving Santana a warning look at the last word. Santana nods more stunned than anything as she watches Brittany walk hand in hand with the child out of the room.

"Kids are always so quick to trust," Daniel notes watching the two of them walk down the hall together towards Harley's bedroom.

"People always trust Brittany and she always trusts people…" Santana responds darkly shaking it off and returning to her seat. She looks tired as she takes the mask off and rubs her eyes, "Daniel, you're my guardian. Tell me I have nothing to worry about, that this guy isn't dangerous and I'll let this go" she says finally seeming to have finally begun to feel how long the night has become.

He watches Santana for a while and then comes back to sit down and glares at the folders. "I don't know," he says finally and rubs the back of his neck visibly disquieted by what he has read. "Just please don't do anything until we know more, Constantine has a lot of friends and it would be foolish to go after him without knowing more" he pleads.

"Alright, when were you planning on telling me you had a kid?" Santana complies and redirects their conversation mercifully.

"I wasn't," he smiles easily, "I will find out more" he assures her leaning forward to collect the folders up.


	7. Calm Before The Storm

**Good lord has it been a while! Ack! So busy lately I can't even begin to describe but the break was needed to recharge my batteries so to speak. How I've done this with all the drama going on I do not know but here I am! Reread some of the earlier stuff and wasn't exactly happy with my work so hopefully things get a bit better from here with some perspective. You guys are great and I always love your feedback so any questions, suggestions, criticism etc you have please lay it on me! **

…

"Remind me again why we are doing this?" Santana asks as she balances the toddler on her knees, watching Harley's tiny feet try to find stability.

Brittany leans over her shoulder giving her cheek a quick peck before responding, "Because we love Daniel and his mom is very sick."

Santana scrunches her nose in response and maneuvers the child into a sitting position, "I don't love him, he is a pain in the a…but" she corrects herself feeling a sharp look from Brittany burning in the back of her skull.

"I'm just saying Sugar would probably be better at this, they have more in common. I mean Sugar loves playing peek-a-boo" Santana jokes as Brittany weaves around furniture tidying up the mess Harley had created.

"You look me in the eye and tell me you don't want to do this for Daniel," Brittany challenges now standing in front of where Santana lounges on the couch.

"Fine, she is cute and I do kind of owe Daniel for keeping the council from lynching me," Santana mumbles quietly under her breath.

The room grows quiet as Harley flops back against Santana's chest arching her head back to look up at her. The smile it brings to Santana's face is mirrored in both the toddler and Brittany but the serene moment was not meant to last.

The door flies open and in storms Sugar barreling in barely managing to close the door behind her as she makes a B-line for the girl.

"Yes! Peek-a-boo! Mister B-ryce is on his way up so hand me the entertainment!" She chimes in extending her hands towards Santana.

The look she is given from Santana is unimpressed but when the smile does not waiver from Sugar's face Santana is forced to hand Harley over to a happy Sugar.

Daniel Bryce wanders in looking like he hasn't slept or showered in about a week and shaving seems like it went out of season a few months ago. He barely manages to acknowledge Santana or Brittany as he makes his way to kiss Harley on the head before she is too distracted in playing with Sugar on the floor.

"Hey, Silver if you want me and Britt can just look over the folders, I mean if you're not up to it-" Santana begins but is cut off by a look she doesn't quite understand but it is enough to silence her.

Daniel looks lost as he finds his way to the kitchen table taking his seat with great unease as though the idea of sitting puts him on edge. He wants desperately to exude the idea that everything is 'fine' when absolutely nothing is.

Brittany nods towards the table and takes Santana gently by the arm guiding her towards it. It isn't that she thinks Santana won't sit, she simply needs the moment of reassuring contact and knows she isn't the only one.

Santana's body language as a whole relaxes slightly as Brittany's hands wrap around her bicep and they walk in slow unison to the table.

They separate but are not sitting far from one another as they've pulled their chairs to the corner of their side of the table without really meaning to do it. The silence turns quickly into tension and neither of them seems willing to break it before Daniel is ready to begin.

"Jack of Diamonds is on town," he admits with bitter exhaustion showing no signs that he cares about the subject, "He's a pretty big crime boss and it looks like he is looking to expand his business into our city. The league would like to know what he is doing before you try and take him down" he rambles on tossing the folder unceremoniously across the table to the girls.

Brittany takes it in one hand and with the other covers Santana's forearm feeling the muscles tighten beneath her grasp. Her thumb rubs gently against the skin in an unspoken attempt to remind Santana not to take his mood personally.

"Umm, this guy can cover his entire body with a diamond coating how exactly are we supposed to fight him…we don't really have lasers" Brittany points out tapping the page lightly.

"You'll figure it out I'm sure," Daniel responds pointedly and then brings his hands up rubbing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Fine, we deal with Diamond boy whatever; do we know where the psycho is who literally tried to bite me head off?" Santana asks drumming her fingers angrily on the table.

"Bodies, we've found bodies" Daniel answers dropping his hands to the table.

"And once more, why the hell aren't WE out there trying to find her?"

"Jurisdiction Santana, how many god damn times do we have to go over this? You cannot just run into another Heroes city and start breaking ear drums trying to find someone simply because they hurt you!" His hands slam down on the table startling both Sugar and Harley on the floor but the pair only pause long enough to look in confusion before returning to their game.

"Hurt me? You've seen her teeth! She is killing people and she magically escapes from captivity and nobody seems that interested in finding her except me! Fine then, you know what? I hope it's Chaos who finds her" Santana exclaims completely forgetting she is supposed to be taking things easy on Daniel this evening. The lack of League activity has her on edge as of late and the fact that they seem content to criticize her every move and patronize her isn't making things better.

"You want to be just like Maxie? They changed her status you know. They don't want her captured if possible anymore; they want her killed on sight. She broke into a meta facility and broke out vigilantes like herself and killed three guards in the process. She is not some saint Santana, she is dangerous and if you associate with her they will consider you and Brittany just as dangerous" His tone is severe as he speaks to her.

"What happened to her then? why did she get kicked out? You tell me not to follow in her footsteps but you won't even tell me what those are!"

"She killed someone"

"I killed Mark" Santana argues back casting a sideways almost apologetic look to Brittany who's eyes cast down in shame at the table. Santana's hand slips down into Brittany's holding it tightly in her own knowing very well the wounds she is currently salting.

"That's…" Daniel pauses rubbing the back of his head, "not the same, it's different" he tries to argue

"How is it different? He's dead!" Santana pushes the subject as something feels decidedly not right with the way Daniel is responding.

"Stop! Please just stop!" Brittany suddenly yells as though on cue to save Daniel from himself. Before Santana can stop her she is standing up, pulling away and turning from the table trying desperately to collect her emotions.

"Britt…I'm" Santana begins but Brittany waves her off gently

"Look I know you're mad that she got away San, but Silver's right we're not judge, jury and executioner. We are supposed to be the good guys and how are we any better than the monsters if we just go around killing people?" She asks looking firmly down at Santana.

"Okay, I promise Britt" She agrees slipping her pinkie to hook against Brittany's and nods gently to her, "I'll let it go for now."

Daniel stares across the table at them his mouth slightly parted as though ready to speak, there are secrets playing at his lips but he knows better than to speak them out loud. They could unravel everything and break the crumbling foundation currently holding Santana above an ocean of mistakes. Costly mistakes that he know will kill her, so he closes his lips and forces a bitter smile across the table at the pair.

"I should really get Harley home; if you need anything on patrol tonight just get Sugar to call me. My neighbor has agreed to watch Harley in case of emergency" He concludes gently and nods towards the file folder, "be careful and consider putting a tracker on him before his defenses go up."

Santana sits silently her hand still connected to Brittany despite the fact that Britt is pulling away to wrap her free arm around Silver's shoulders. The gesture is returned warmly much to Santana's chagrin and it causes her hand to slip more securely into Brittany's.

…

Santana closes the front door having finally gotten everyone out of the apartment and now finds herself staring down the deep blue eyes she adores so much. It takes a bit of effort to avoid them as she turns around to flop back against the door but inevitably they draw her back in.

"You said you wouldn't pick fights today," Brittany reminds Santana.

"I know…" Santana admits guiltily trying desperately to look anywhere but the penetrating gaze of one Brittany S Pierce but it is near impossible to avoid

"You promised me"

"I know." Santana's voice finds a bit of an edge now, "he is hiding something"

"San, he isn't the enemy he is our friend"

Santana stares blankly at her for a moment.

"He is! He is always looking out for us, so if he is keeping secrets it's probably for a good reason" Brittany argues

"The way he acted when I brought up Mark…" Santana presses the subject as she steps away from the door and towards Britt.

Brittany recoils away from the name as though she has just been struck, "San…Mark is dead can we just…" she mumbles insecurely.

"I know, I…just…we don't even know what happened to the body and with everything that has been going on" Santana tries to explain.

"Santana please just stop!" Brittany's voice gains a gravelly edge as she storms away from Santana towards the bathroom.

That's the problem with living in such an open apartment there's really only two rooms to the whole place so it becomes impossible to find somewhere to storm off to. Santana watches her with wide eyes and cringes noticeably when the door slams shut.

"Fuck," She mutters uselessly rubbing the back of her neck in raw irritation as she tries not to make a bad situation even worse. Deep down she knows she shouldn't have said anything about Mark in the first place but it's been on her mind a lot recently. Everything the council has done so far has been shady and she simply cannot take their word on anything anymore.

Brittany is the only one she has to talk to these things about and she is usually the only person who will hear her out without getting angry or patronizing her. She doesn't want to be pacified like a fussy baby every time she raises a concern about the ongoings of her city. She isn't sitting at the kids table anymore but she seems to be the only person who remembers this most of the time.

"Anyone else I can piss off today?" Santana finally mumbles in bitter defeat as she shuffles towards the wardrobe to begin getting ready. The nagging voice in the back of her head wants to remind Brittany they're due out on the streets in an hour but the rest of her doesn't want to antagonize her further.

Getting dressed becomes almost violent as Santana begins angrily tearing off her own clothes (for once). She reaches behind her head to grab the back of her shirt and quickly pulls it off tossing it onto the floor. Her jeans are quick to follow and she kicks them sending them into the nearest wall and then stands in her underwear for a while staring at the costume as it hangs in the closet.

There's something about it that always feels like home when she slips it on and even just looking at It gives her goose bumps. If love affairs with inanimate objects or more specifically articles of clothing were possible she would be having one with her mask. Nothing sexual of course but sliding it on over her eyes, the sense of power it provides makes her fall in love with it.

She loves the way the sides come up in slight wings like the helmet of a Valkyrie over her ears and the way the eyes seem to draw in the darkness. She slides it over her face and she isn't Santana anymore she is the Veiled Fairy. All insecurities about her abilities or the world melt away because with that mask on she believes she can do anything.

The rest of the suit hugs like a glove, it feels protective without being restrictive and just like every other time she puts it on she feels instantly at ease. History has proven that it cannot protect her from all danger but she still feels safe somehow.

She could spend hours playing the waiting game with Brittany and confront her when she finally comes out of the bathroom but that isn't going to get them anywhere. She knows she was wrong, she knows she should just apologize through the door but somehow she can't.

Santana finishes dressing and approaches the door softly laying her hand against it trying to find her voice. She stands for a moment knowing Brittany is sitting on the floor on the other side doing her very best to sort out whatever it is that she is feeling.

Her voice is emotionless when it finally comes to her, "I'll be on the roof of the theatre when you're ready," she calls through the door and leaves before Brittany has a chance to respond.

…

"Come on Britt," Santana groans rubbing her arms furiously against the bitter cold though it seems utterly futile.

She regrets leaving the house without Brittany knowing full well the girl could just leave her out waiting all night. Her pride won't let her slink back to check on Brittany so she's stuck standing on the roof of a theatre freezing her ass off.

"You know it's rude to sneak up on people," Santana announces suddenly and turns around to find Chaos landing softly on the roof top about twenty feet away.

Maxie stands up brushing the dirt and debris off of her legs seeming unbothered that she had been caught trying to make a covert entrance. She rolls her shoulders back in slight discomfort and Santana notices the wings aren't there.

"You know it's rude to stare sweetheart," Maxie fires back without missing a beat, "and here comes the pretty bird now."

As though on cue Brittany grapples up onto the roof landing with a natural grace that is as soundless as it is beautiful. She strides easily up to Santana appraising her with a critical eye for a long moment, completely oblivious to the silent tension.

As her mouth opens to speak Santana shakes her head slowly, "No, I understand and I'm sorry" she expresses quietly. It isn't the first argument that has dissolved without really discussing anything at all and it won't be the last either.

Brittany nods slowly and hooks her arm around Santana's holding it tightly as she returns her attention to a patiently waiting Chaos.

Maxine stretches catching her hands lazily behind her head, "Right, glad Brittana is here to stay it's really quite sweet" she jokes with an indulgent laugh.

Brittany recoils looking a bit stunned but the look on Santana's face is anything but, "detective Maxie uncovers the secret identity of the Songbird? Congratulations" she shoots back sarcastically.

"I figured it was only fair seeing as you both know who I am…but that isn't why I'm here." She drops her hands and rummages through her belt until she finds what she is looking for, "this is" she mentions tossing something across to them.

Santana catches it and turns it over in her hands, "And why are you giving me a tracking device?" she asks feeling immediately suspicious.

"I want you to track Jack of Diamonds and to see what he is doing," Maxie explains slowly.

"A meta human who has murdered probably dozens of people" Santana says

"At least"

"Exactly, he is the perfect candidate for your death row so why on earth do you want to hand him over to the League?"

"I didn't say I was handing him to the League, I said I wanted you to see what he was doing"

"Why do we need a tracker, Santana can hide from anyone in the darkness it can't be that hard to follow him?" Brittany points out feeling a bit reluctant now to accept Maxine's help. There's something Maxine isn't saying and it's written all over her face but while Santana can't see it, Brittany can.

Maxie can barely contain the smile that tugs mercilessly at the corners of her mouth, "Danny will stop you…I can't really tell you why but you'll see" she explains backing towards the edge of the building.

Santana's brow furrows, "why don't you just tell me what I'll see? You obviously know" she argues and this time Brittany nods in agreement with her.

"You wouldn't believe me even if I did tell you. You're bleeding in the shark's tank and nobody has the decency to tell you, so I'm going to show you" Maxie says finally before turning and dropping into the darkness.

Santana sighs and tilts her face skyward her eyes closing for a bit longer than a standard blink as she tries to make a decision. "Sugar, little eavesdropper…can you get a signal from this tracking device?" she breathes.

Sugar squeaks on the other end and there's a long silence and then finally she answers, "most definitely and…it seems I'm the only one tracking it."

Brittany leans into Santana nudging her with her hip lightly, "What do you want to do? Do you think we can trust her?" she asks.

"No, but right now I don't think we can trust anyone and at least this might give us some answers" Santana whispers closing the tracking device in her hand.

"Hate to interrupt this pow-wow but I've got a visual on Diamonds, traffic cam has him parked outside a convenience store two blocks south…you may want to hurry" Sugar chimes in ruining any chance for further discussion.

…

Two blocks is nothing for the duo and they make quick work over the rooftops and descend upon the car without a real plan. Brittany lands hard on the hood of the vehicle and beams enigmatically at the man who sits in the back seat. Santana lands a bit more gracefully behind the car and absorbs the darkness into a veil allowing her to remain unseen.

The plan is simple, distract him and plant the bug before he armors up but beyond that the girls don't really know what they're doing. An exit plan was never discussed and neither was the plan for dealing with inevitable henchmen.

They paid no attention to the other cars parked around the Jack of Diamond's car or the ten men lingering outside the store. Brittany's bait is enough and the man opens the car door stepping outside of the vehicle. He's reaching for the gun inside his jacket as are all the other men when Santana slips out of hiding.

She strikes quickly planting the heel of her boot into the back of his knee and gets in one shot with her palm to his head. Her other hand strikes awkwardly downward her hand pushing the collar of his shirt down and appears like she missed trying to strike his neck or shoulder. In truth her hand is able to attach the tracker just below the back of his neck.

The bullets begin to reign as Brittany darts into the alleyway with one hand extended behind her with her fingers spread out. The only thing stopping the bullets from piercing her body is the telekinetic shield she is struggling to maintain.

Santana's next strike hits hard in all the wrong ways, she leans into it and finds her hand punching into a freshly formed diamond shell. Pain explodes across her knuckles sending reverberating shockwaves through her hand down to her wrist. She screams in partial protest and pain and it buys her a few seconds to get away.

Unlike Brittany she has no shields to defend herself so she bolts around the first corner she finds and kicks up into the air flying slow at first but fear kicks in as they spot her and she's off like a shot. She gets high enough to grapple onto a nearby building and collapses with her hands covering her chest as it heaves for oxygen.

Adrenaline is a wonderful thing and it momentarily dulls the pain that throbs consistently in her hand which appears to be by all accounts broken. She listens quietly as two sets of boots land on the opposite side of the roof. She can't see them from where she is laying but she doesn't need to see them to know who it is.

Brittany jogs easily across the roof to Santana's side and helps her off the ground before taking her one hand between both of her own. The look on her face says more than her words could and she is quick to begin healing it while keeping her back to the Silver Arrow.

He looks guilty as he stalks across the roof trying desperately now to find the right words to pacify the Veiled Fairy. He stays a good length away or as Santana would refer to it as out of punching distance.

"I need you to make me a promise" he says slowly and sounding entirely unsure of what he is asking.

"I'm not in the business of making promises I can't keep" Santana responds coolly knowing full well what he is about to ask her.

"I need you to promise me that you will go home right now and stay there" his voice is harsh low whisper.

Brittany looks sharply at Santana staring her down for a moment trying to convey a silent plan to her and it seems to work as Santana nods smoothly to her.

"Yeah sure thing Silver, Santana's hand is broken in a few places it will take some time for me to heal it anyways," Brittany lies as she gently holds Santana's nearly healed hand.

Santana mirrors the sentiment with a careless shrug of her shoulders and turns her attention towards the direction of home, "not like we know where the bastard went anyways."

"Just curious though," Brittany says narrowing her attention in on Daniel, "the League wanted to know what this guy was doing so why is the council calling us off?"

Daniel sits stunned for a moment staring back at Brittany desperately trying to form some sort of lie inside his head. He knows why and there's no way for him to paint the picture in such a light that won't destroy Santana and Brittany's trust in the council. In truth he isn't entirely sure he knows what to think of the truth.

"You're not going to like it but they're breaking jurisdiction to send in a team of specialists to handle this unique situation," he lies and isn't convincing anyone but the girls smile and nod at him anyways.

…

They go back to the apartment just long enough to convince Daniel they are staying before they are gone. Sugar has sent them the GPS coordinates to the tracker and they're racing across the rooftops not taking their chances with time. With their luck Daniel will have gone back to check on them only to find them conveniently missing.

"Daniel was lying…" Brittany processes nervously as she leaps from one building to another her attention torn between Santana and trying not to fall to an untimely death. It is during these jumps she is jealous of Santana's ability to fly(however unpredictable) and Maxie's wings.

"I know but as much as I hate to admit this Daniel has always been on our side which means he's probably trying to protect us" Santana rationalizes for what seems like the first time in a long time.

"So," Brittany is cut off as she lands hard and tumbles to a stop, "do you think we should go back?" She asks taking a second to catch her breath as Santana checks the coordinates again.

"No, I'm tired of the secrets and being kept in the dark by the council it's our damn asses on the line out here we deserve to know what we're up against," She argues feeling comfortably as stubborn as ever.

Brittany finds it hard to disagree but cannot shake the feeling of uncertainty as they pick up the pace once again surging towards their target without a real plan.

They give pause outside of a large warehouse and Santana cannot help but roll her eyes at the cliché meeting spot. She is almost certain Brittany and her cleared the place out of gun runners not two weeks ago and probably some other unsavory characters before that.

Brittany is not the only one feeling uneasy as Santana cannot help but feel nervous as they get closer. She pulls a veil around them as they creep closer to the warehouse pausing just outside the south facing wall.

"Can you see inside?" Santana whispers nudging Brittany lightly to get her attention.

Brittany nods anxiously and tries to focus on the building to see inside but it's nearly impossible to think about anything other than the nervous knots collecting in her stomach.

"Umm it's maybe three people inside the room…pretty empty space just filled with crates and a couple cars," she tries and then shakes her head trying to clear her vision.

"Can you see who is in the building?" Santana encourages as she is clearly looking for more of a strategic advantage than the vague description she was just given.

"It doesn't work like that Santana, it's just shapes and I can tell which shapes are alive…it's not like I have a webcam in there." Brittany argues and then points above them, "There, there's a ledge near that window we can see from there".

They climb carefully onto the ledge of the busted out window and find themselves near the catwalks above the main floor. Santana begins to pull the shadows from the walls and ceiling wrapping Brittany and herself in the darkness as they creep quietly across the catwalk towards the sounds of voices.

The Jack of Diamonds is there looking just as greasy and annoyed as he was when they saw him earlier but he is not alone. The man he is talking to has his back to them but there's something about him that seems eerily familiar.

The unknown man turns suddenly as though someone has tapped him on the shoulder and he looks around in confusion, searching for something, someone in the darkness but he can see nothing.

Santana feels suddenly nauseated as she stares down at Mark, littered with scars about his face and looking quite sick but the resemblance is unmistakable. She can feel Brittany shake next to her and the intake of oxygen she is more than acquainted with.

Santana throws her body on top of Brittany's wrapping her hands tightly around her mouth holding back the noise the best she can. She buries her face down into Brittany's neck grinding her teeth tightly better trying to resist the exact same compulsion.

She can't focus and she needs to be able to control the darkness enough to hide them or Mark will surely sense them. The shadows naturally like her but they're not enough she needs to hide them completely and it's already slipping as her head begins to swim.

"B, we need to leave…I can't hide us" Santana gets out before the darkness lifts from them and her head begins to feel heavy in a sickeningly familiar way that causes her to nearly vomit. "Now" she chokes out a bit louder than she would like.

Scrambling off of the ground she goes to run and notices Brittany hasn't moved, she's still staring down at Mark. The Jack of Diamonds is shouting orders, none of which sound like a welcoming committee and their timeframe of escaping is growing narrow.

Santana reaches down grabbing Brittany by the shoulders and heaves her to her feet before dragging her to the window by the hand. She can hear the distant wail of sirens and then a squeal of wheels sliding across pavement as she grabs Brittany and leaps from the window. It's a long drop but she is able to slow them with a pitiful attempt at flying.

They land hard against the gravel and Brittany still seems unresponsive as Santana's head twists around like it's on a swivel as she tries to spy an exit. A car speeds towards them and brakes hard as it grows close sending rocks flying in every direction.

It's Daniel leaning out the driver's side window, "IN! Now!" he barks at them a terrified urgency to his voice.

Santana does not need to be told twice and she gets to her feet once again having to haul Brittany up with her and practically throws her in the backseat before jumping into the passenger side front seat. They're already speeding before she gets the door closed and bullets are ricocheting off the gravel around the car.

They're kilometers away before Santana can even think to exhale and when she does it's a string of incoherent profanity followed by her fist beating repeatedly into the glove box.

"I know, but I don't have answers yet. We will be getting them though" Daniel says sounding remarkably like he just might murder someone. This comes as more of a relief than anything to Santana though her rage towards him is nowhere near gone.


End file.
